


Only a shadow

by sourome



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Friendship/Love, Hinata Shouyou is a Good Friend, One Night Stands, Pls just read, Reader Is Injured, Reader-Insert, Romance, Slow Burn, Tags Are Hard, bokuto is still dumb but we love him, goshiki is a good friend, kuroo is a nerd, reader is a nerd, reader is wakatoshis cousin, reader likes baking, shiratorizawa manager, terushima is kinda mean, terushima yuuji is your ex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-12
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-16 09:33:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 24,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28704483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sourome/pseuds/sourome
Summary: Y/N Ushijima has always worked hard to get where she is, a great student who managed to get a scholarship with her grades. But she couldn't manage to feel as anything else but his cousins shadow. With her health issues on the way, there was no way she could even try to play volleyball, but she still wanted to be part of that world.When Goshiki asks her to be their manager she knew she had to say yes.In that world she met people like Hinata and Yachi, who became really close friends with her.And guys like Bokuto and Kuroo.Now that she moved to Tokyo she wonders... What are they doing now? Does Bokuto still like chocolate cake? Is Kuroo still waiting for his jacket?
Relationships: Bokuto Koutarou/Reader, Kuroo Tetsurou/Reader
Comments: 4
Kudos: 19





	1. The crystal girl

Another day in Shiratorizawa Academy. You felt immensely lucky being there, an accomplishment merely based in your intellect and effort. As you have always told yourself, you were going to make it on your own, giving it your all to be the best of the family.  
The biggest issue? Your cousin, Ushijima Wakatoshi. There was no denying that his natural talent and his efforts for his passion made you feel like his shadow, like he was necessary for your existence. You no longer had a name, you were just his cousin, the younger of the Ushijimas.  
Regardless of that, when Goshiki approached you inviting you to be their manager, you knew you had to say yes. Goshiki was a really important friend in your life, you even dated for a little while but quickly realized that you couldn’t be with someone who idolatrized Toshi.  
Even if you were hesitant, not knowing how someone with your physical impediments could help, you knew you had to do it, at least for Goshiki.  
“Please Y/N-chan you know we need as much help as possible, with the camp approaching, the 3rd years are not as much in practice, and everything is going to become a mess! Even Tendou-san told me I should convince someone to be our manager, and I need you.”  
“I-I will do it. But just for you. I don’t even wanna talk to Tendou. He is a pain in the ass, and he enjoys teasing me way too much.”  
“Teasing us.”  
“Yeah, you are right.” you laughed it off and decided to get something to eat together.

Having joint hypermobility syndrome made physical activities way more difficult for you, so you still wondered why they approached you. Once again, you failed to be the best by simply being born in that way. Even if it was something out of your control, it frustrated you, and you couldn’t throw all that blame on your mother, even though you inherited it from her deep down you knew it wasn’t her fault.  
You were nervous to even approach the gym. That alone was astonishing. You weren’t a nervous person, and scenarios that meant talking and meeting new people were your favorite. And, you know, there were lots of attractive guys inside that gym too…  
When you were about to open the door, someone inside opened it almost as if they were reading your troubled mind. Of course it was everyone’s favorite redhead. You sighed at the view of a cheeky smile approaching from his lips.  
“Y/N-chaaaan!!! We finally got the elastic girl all for ourselves!” He pulled your arm and dragged you inside that gigantic gym you had always despised.  
“Stop pulling you goddamn freak! You are going to make my wrist pop out of place, or even my shoulder with how hard you’re pulling.” He was always like that with you. You have known him for a long time, since he was Toshi’s friend, but not even that gave him the right to cause you physical discomfort at the expense of some momentary laughs.  
“My bad, my bad. Well at least now you are our crystal girl, elastic girl, whatever you prefer. Do you want ice for your wrist? Or a bandage maybe. Oh wait! I will get the bandages don’t you even dare to move.” He said overenthusiastically, moving his arms around as insanely as he could.  
You were already hesitant about your actions, until you saw Goshiki.  
“Goshiki-kun!” you hugged him tightly “What’s up? I am so so nervous. I hope you know I’m only doing this for you.” You said while poking him in the cheek.  
“I-I don’t think you should do that around Tendou-san. He will probably tease us and you hate that.”  
“Hm… maybe. But he should know by now that I have a boyfriend.” You said smiling and pulling out your phone to show him to your friend.  
“Whaat? I thought you broke up with him weeks ago.”  
“Oh, it’s… a different guy hahah.” you brushed your hair off of your face nervously and showed him the picture. “Look this is Yuuji-kun! He is also a volleyball player and you know what? He has a tongue pier-“  
You felt someone touching your shoulder. You couldn’t escape him, huh? Just like a shadow depends on its object to exist, no matter how much you run you will still be attached to him, running and running to at least not be a part of him. But today, as always, you are the one to blame for your encounter.  
“Boyfriend? Let me see.” he grabbed your phone, not giving you a chance to think about it. He clicked his tongue, of course he would disapprove of your boyfriend. “Dyed hair and a piercing? Break up with him. I don’t care if he plays volleyball, there’s no way he’s a good influence for you. And you know you have to study in order to maintain your scholarship.”  
“I am studying, plus I can have any guy that I want.” you crossed your arms and stared at him with a cold look in your eyes.  
“I will only allow you to date Tendou and no one else. Those are your options.”  
“There’s no way I would date Tendou!”  
Just as if he could feel someone calling, the guess monster approached the group laughing.  
“Don’t worry I wouldn’t date you either, with that gaze you look just like Wakatoshi-kun, it’s kinda creepy actually. Now give me your hand, I will fix it real quick.”

The itinerary for the day seemed simple, you just had to fill water bottles, wash their jerseys, pick up the balls, toss them… one would think it would go as usual. But a player from Karasuno decided to come unannounced, and the coach sent him to help you.  
His name was Hinata Shoyou. He was actually very nice, and helped a ton. You could tell he was a good player, and remembered how he played against your team.  
The days passed by, and the camp ended. You couldn’t say you felt closer to the team, but as Yuuji said that is something that takes time.  
You actually met Yuuji while waiting at a bus stop. He saw your uniform and was surprised that someone from your school even took a bus. You explained everything about your scholarship and he was very impressed. Talking and laughing you even missed your bus, so he decided to wait with you. Before you left he gave you his number and invited you on a date.  
Now, being a month from the first time you met, he decided to invite you to his high school to play volleyball with him. What could go wrong?  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! What's up everyone? I'm Rome aaand this is my first time writing.  
> So please feel free to comment and tell me your opinion! Since this first chapters are lowkey short, I'll try and publish at least 4 during this week.  
> Once the timeskip takes place, I'll try to make them longer.  
> Hope you like the story!  
> <3


	2. Amazinger

Oh but everything could go wrong. And of course it did. Now you have a sprained ankle and three months with a support brace and crutches. You should have known.  
But Yuuji was really helpful, or at least that was your opinion. When you fell, he went to the emergency room with you, and waited until you received the proper treatment. Then he went to the campus where Goshiki, Hana and Ayumi were waiting for you after you gave them a call. Yuuji promised to take you to Tokyo to watch the nationals like you wanted (probably because he felt guilty about what happened to you) and even to help you leave the campus.  
After being scolded by Goshiki of all people, your friends helped you and you arrived to your room. You took the painkillers they gave you and decided to go to sleep.  
Even with all the pain, you were happy that you got to watch the nationals like you wanted. Even if you couldn’t play volleyball you definitely liked it, and being around Toshi taught you to distinguish good players from bad players. Leaving your friends with the job of telling your cousin that you felt sick, you travelled to Tokyo with Yuuji.  
You were lucky though, given that it was Saturday which meant no classes, yet you planned to stay there at least till Monday. Once you arrived, after a little argument since he didn’t even bother to look for a place to crash, you suggested to watch Karasuno since they were from your prefecture and you really wanted to watch Hinata play. When you said that he disagreed and said that Fukurodani was the way to start.  
“It might not be the main area but in my opinion Fukurodani is the one to beat. They are ready to win this whole thing. That Hinata can wait, if they win we will watch them tomorrow.”  
“Jeez, you don’t need to act like that I get it.” you tried to seem angry, but of course you weren’t. You gave him a kiss and went to watch the match.  
You couldn’t find any empty seats. ‘This better be good if I’m gonna be watching standing up with a sprained ankle.’  
With what Yuuji told you, along with what you have heard, you expected way more from Fukurodani. For some reason their ace, Koutarou Bokuto, was acting really strange during the match; maybe he was feeling sick?  
And just like that, he proved you wrong. His shot against the three blockers from Eiwa was more than impressive to you.  
“Wow! That was so cool!” you smiled and looked at your boyfriend searching for a response.  
Suddenly you heard your name being called.  
“Y/N-san!” Hinata was there with another guy, who you didn’t know, and for some reason they were awkwardly holding a t-shirt. “Oh! You are with the piercing guy?”  
“Hinata! You know each other?”  
“Oh, yeah we played a match against them and he was really pushy with our manager. He wanted her number but Kiyoko-san didn’t want to talk to him.”  
“Well that’s news to me. I hope that was a while ago Yuuji-kun.” you said acting as if you were angry.  
“Oh, y-yeah I didn’t even know you back then. Sorry.”  
You noticed Hinata’s teammate wasn’t talking so you decided to introduce yourself.  
“Nice to meet you! My name is Ushijima Y/N.” you bowed and continued talking “I hope I can watch you two play tomorrow.” then gave them a little smile.  
“Ushijima? L-like Shiratorizawa’s ace?” it seemed like your biggest nightmare was unavoidable.  
“Shh… don’t call her that! Just call her by her name, she prefers that.” Hinata said, trying to act secretly, but of course it didn’t work.  
“Don’t worry about it too much, he is my cousin yeah, but I am my own individual so I prefer being called by my first name, even if some find it disrespectful.”  
“Oh.. Okay then Y/N-san! My name is Yamaguchi Tadashi. It’s nice to meet you too.”  
Once the formalities were disclosed, you addressed what has been bothering you from a while; that damn t-shirt.  
“I actually bought it because Bokuto-san has the same one. It’s really cool right?” Hinata said happily.  
“Yeah! Wait you mean Bokuto Koutarou? Like, that guy?” You pointed the grey haired that at the bench now with his teammates.  
“Yeah! He is so cool! He taught me how to do feints and his spikes are so amazing like wham!” he was always so enthusiastic; you were glad you found him there. “Do you want to meet him?”  
“Huh? I mean yeah, but I don’t want to bother him. He seems… popular.”  
Just as you said that, Hinata grabbed your hand and started running to where the ace was.  
“W-wait Hinata my crutches!” you held onto them like life itself depended on it.  
“Oh crap, sorry!”  
You were more than impressed just watching him from the distance, but approaching him seemed impossible.  
“Bokuto- san! Bokuto- san!”  
He looked at you two, at first he smiled but then he noticed that you were starting to fall to the ground. He quickly went to where you were and grabbed your crutches to help you stand up.  
“I… sorry” you said looking down. ‘That is a bad first impression if I’ve ever seen one’ you thought to yourself.  
“Don’t worry about it! Just take care of your leg alright?”  
You smiled at him not knowing what to say.  
“Hinata you shouldn’t run with some injured girl… did something happen?”  
“Oh sorry haha. She just said she wanted to meet you so yeah I ran.” he said scratching his hair nervously.  
After an awkward pause, you decided to talk.  
“Hi! I’m Ushijima Y/N. It’s nice to meet you. I just thought you and your team were amazing, and your spike at the end was so cool! Like from a movie!” you noticed you were starting to sound like Hinata so you decided to stop.  
“Hahah right? I’m amazing after all! I can teach you some stu- oh wait your leg. Shit, sorry.”  
“Don’t worry about it haha”  
“You said your name was Ushijima? Are you related to Ushijima Wakatoshi?” it always happens. Always. But you were to blame, surrounding yourself with volleyball players, what were you expecting?  
“Yeah, he is my cousin but I prefer to just be called by my name. I don’t want people to think ‘oh she is Wakatoshi’s cousin’ I am my own person and I don’t need him to succeed.” you snapped. After saying that, you felt sorry for Bokuto and even apologized clumsily.  
“Hahah it’s okay. You are your own person and I bet you are even amazinger than he is. So it’s Y/N-chan then? Does it sound good to you?” You just nodded and laughed. Amazinger isn’t even a word, but that was definitely something funny to witness.  
He was so likeable, it immediately made you want to know more about him, you could spend hours talking to him.  
“Yeah, thanks Bokuto-san.” you just smiled at him and admired how, for once, someone said that you were amazing. Even more amazing than Toshi? There’s no way. But it made you so happy.  
“Just call me Koutarou. That way is fair, don’t you think?”  
After a little while, Hinata interrupted you and invited both of you to go watch Nekoma play against Kiyokawa with his teammates. Of course you agreed, and along Bokuto and his friend Akaashi you went to the place where you were watching the match so you could meet with Yuuji and Yamaguchi.  
But Yuuji wasn’t there. He left.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aaaa  
> hi!  
> Sorry for making Terushima such a piece of shit I swear I like him  
> Let's just say he is immature and insecure...  
> okay, once again feel free to comment... I would love some opinions, I want to know if this sucks or if it's at least decent  
> gonna upload another chapter now, and then maybe on the weekend  
> hope you like it so far!  
> Rome <3


	3. Two nerds

He left you. He didn’t even answer your calls, and you had no way to know where he was; you didn’t even have a hostel or a place to stay the night… and he had your luggage too.  
“You have to be joking… he has all of my stuff!” you were more than pissed, and started asking things to Yamaguchi. That poor soul had nothing to do with it.  
“He just said he was bored and that he didn’t want to wait while you were talking to some shitty player.” Bokuto looked at him, confused. “Oh s-sorry those were the exact words that he said, and then he left.”  
“Did he say anything about where he was staying? I can’t believe he just decided to leave me empty handed. And I can’t call my parents when they don’t know I’m here… God if Toshi finds out I’m dead.”  
Hearing that, Bokuto wrapped his arm around your shoulders and looked at you with a smile. “Don’t worry about it too much! We will find a solution, alright? Everyone from Fukurodani lives in Tokyo so I’m sure we will find a place for you to stay tonight, and we can have dinner together!”  
Honestly? He almost made you cry.  
“Thanks Bokuto… I don’t know why he did that to me, he has always been so nice, he even helped when I got injured.”  
“Don’t worry about it now and let’s go watch the match! I wanna see how those damn cats are doing.”  
The five of you found places to seat right behind Karasuno’s third years, who apparently were eating.  
“Looks like it’s mukbang time.” You said jokingly, and introduced yourself to the teamplayers whose names apparently were Sawamura Daichi, Azumane Asahi and Sugawara Koushi.  
Before they could even ask, Hinata interrupted them and said “Yes, she is Ushijima Wakatoshi’s cousin, but that doesn’t matter! Just call her Y/N-san she prefers that.”  
Needless to say, they were surprised by Hinata’s reaction but went along with it.  
You sat down between Hinata and Bokuto, the latter one decided to take the initiative to help you with your crutches.  
In your opinion, both teams were really good, but for some reason Nekoma’s duo, their middle blocker and their setter, stood out to you the most. Even though duos would usually be the ace and the setter in most minds, those two had something that made them almost the same mind. Undoubtedly Nekoma was a team whose ability didn’t rely on any specific players; they were all great of course, but they were a team before individuals. You actually remembered talking about the same thing with Toshi a while back.  
So you asked Bokuto if he knew anything about it.  
“Um… so Nekoma’s middle blocker and their setter… have they known each other for long?”  
“You mean Kuroo and Kenma-san? They are childhood friends, so yeah. Why do you ask?”  
“Well it makes sense. It’s like they communicate without even talking, and that energy travels through the entire team.”  
After a short pause, he asked.  
“Do you play volleyball? I don’t think you can notice stuff like that without playing.”  
“Um, no. I don’t. I actually have a health impediment so playing sports is out of limits. But I definitely like volleyball! And I have spent many hours of my life supporting my cousin and learning from him, and now I’m even the team manager for Shiratorizawa Academy. I guess no matter how hard I try; I can’t escape his world.” Why were you opening up to him so much? Maybe his honest approach and his curiosity got the best of you.  
“Why is it his world? I enjoy volleyball and I’m definitely not part of his world. Your life is yours and only yours, you shouldn’t doubt yourself just because you have some things in common. And even if you can’t play volleyball you found a way to make it a part of you! That’s so amazing.”  
“I guess… sometimes I wonder, if I were able to play volleyball, would I be able to even reach him? It’s just… I don’t think I will ever win.”  
“You can’t think like that. Stop thinking about the ‘what if’s’ and enjoy life! I bet there are things you can do that he can’t. What do you like to do?”  
“Um… baking? I can’t say I’m good at it but I can do some pastries and desserts. I like reading too if that counts.” You smiled awkwardly, feeling as if your accomplishments weren’t enough.  
“That’s so cool! So you can make bread and cakes and stuff? Wow! Can you make me a chocolate cake for my birthday? Wait no, chocolate and strawberries!” He said enthusiastically.  
You were shocked at his response, and couldn’t believe it, but he always seemed so… honest. So you just laughed happily at his response.  
“Huh? Did I say anything weird Y/N-chan?”  
“Not at all. You just made me happy. I will bake you the best cake for your birthday, don’t worry about it.”  
He looked at you, kinda confused, but then smiled.  
Then Hinata called you, which scared you a little since you forgot about your surroundings.  
“We should go say hi to Kenma!”  
“Oh, are you friends with him? Then sure! I would love to meet anyone that’s friends with you.”  
“Then let’s go!” Hinata said, smiling as bright as always. Apparently you made it your job to be surrounded by sunshines.  
“I’ll go too, let me help you down the stairs, I don’t trust Hinata after the running incident.” Bokuto said, while holding your arm and helping you stand up.  
“I wouldn’t trust you either, Bokuto-san. Let me help her.” Akaashi said. You agreed with him, and went downstairs to meet the Nekoma setter.  
Just like Akaashi, Kenma seemed more like the reserved type, so you wondered if he even cared about meeting people.  
Hinata greeted the setter, whose eyes left his console once he heard Hinata’s voice. Next to Kenma, was the middle blocker that Bokuto called ‘Kuroo’.  
Kenma said hi, and quickly went back to his game, but still listening to Hinata. Bokuto greeted his friend Kuroo.  
“Hey Kuroo! What a match huh? I bet you are tired man.”  
“Not at all, maybe you are tired, or did you go into full emo mode during your match?”  
“I didn’t! I was amazing today! Right Y/N-chan?” He looked at you pouting, waiting for a positive answer.  
“Yeah! Definitely!” “Oh! I didn’t introduce myself! Shit, sorry.”  
“No worries, Y/N-chan, right? What’s your last name?”  
“Um… Ushijima.” “B-but don’t call me like that please.”  
“Noted, so I’ll just call you Y/N-chan like Bokuto, or would you prefer me to call you Chibi-chan?” You felt your face burning up, why tough? He barely said anything to you!  
“W-what? Please don’t that’s… ugh just don’t okay!”  
He was more than happy with your reaction, he just liked teasing with people and you were the perfect target.  
“So, did you watch our match?”  
“Yeah of course, congratulations on winning by the way!”  
“Oh! Kuroo guess what? She said that you and Kenma communicate without talking!” Bokuto said excitedly.  
“That… just sounds weird without context Bokuto. I meant that you to connect and understand each other while playing, and spread those same mannerisms trough the team, as if you were just one unit.” You said, trying to make Bokuto’s words make sense.  
“Huh… well I guess we are doing a good job then. That’s what Nekoma stands for, we connect. We are like the blood in our veins, we must flow without stopping. Keep the oxygen moving and your mind working.” He said very proud of his metaphor.  
“I’m guessing the mind there is your setter, right?”  
“You’re right. Kenma is the brain and we are the blood.”  
“I’m also guessing that you really like biology, there’s no other way you would feel the need to explain something like that with such an analogy.” You laughed it off.  
“What can I say, I’m a science nerd. And I’m guessing you are more into letters. I didn’t even know what I said was an anology.”  
“Yeah, of course it is! If you want to get more specific, it’s a metaphor. Analogies are the comparison of different objects or situations, but once you approach the figurative speech we are talking about a metaphor.” Standing proud with your explanation, you waited for a response.  
“Yep. You are a nerd too.” He laughed, and then touched your shoulder. “It was nice to meet you, hope your foot gets better.”  
“Wait Kuroo!” Bokuto suddenly said. “Do you think you can let Y/N-chan spend the night at your place?”  
“Huh? Well I definitely wish I could.” “Sorry, we will have to leave it you another time.” He winked at you. “Bye now, you too.” Fuck why did he have to wink?  
After that, both Kenma and Kuroo left.  
Bokuto now being his pouting self (you wondered if that’s what Kuroo meant by emo mode) turned to Akaashi.  
“Akaaashi… do you th-“  
“Sorry, Bokuto-san. There’s no way my parents would allow me to invite a girl to stay over for the night.”  
After a while, everyone started leaving and you kept wondering if you would even find a place to stay. Damn that Terushima Yuuji… hopefully you would figure things out with him afterwards. You didn’t want to lose him.  
“Hey…Bokuto, don’t worry, I’ll just call my parents, or I can call Tendou. He will tell Wakatoshi but at this point I don’t care since it’s all my fault.”  
“Don’t say that! You can just stay at my house. I doubt my parents care, though I’m kind of… um let’s just say they are mad at me.” You raised an eyebrow. “D-don’t worry! I’ll call my sister. She will figure it out, okay? Just smile.” He said, drawing a smile with his fingers over his face.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay but let's just say it Bokuto is so cute  
> Sorry I just love him ahhh  
> Do you think you'll be able to stay at his house? It sure is tempting...  
> I really like writing this notes, hopefully someone reads them..  
> okay I will go to bed now mom  
> Rome <3


	4. Who would die first?

Apparently he was able to convince his older sister, Mako, since she couldn’t let a girl alone on her own.  
His house was bigger than you expected, you thought it made sense with him going to a private academy; yet your situation was just the opposite. So you decided to stop making assumptions over someone who had the hospitality of inviting you into his home.  
Mako greeted both of you in quite a rush, and said that you could stay in her room since she was doing a night shift at work. In the kitchen, waiting, were his mother and his other older sister (who was slightly nearer Koutarou’s age), Sayaka. They both greeted you, and proceeded to give the younger owl quite the talk.  
“Kou, we said no more going out, or anyone coming over until your grades go up.” His mother said, making Bokuto clearly ashamed of himself.  
“I´m sooorry mom but you know this is an emergency! I talked to Mako about this and she said it was okay!”  
“It is. Don’t worry, we won’t leave a child alone in such a big city, one that she doesn’t know.” “Now dear tell me, what’s your name?”  
“Um… I’m Ushijima Y/N. Nice to meet you both.”  
“It’s nice to meet you dear. Now tell me, what do you want to have for dinner? I’m going to the store right now so I don’t mind, just choose whatever you like.” His mom was just as nice as him, you felt welcomed.  
“Oh just buy whatever you were going to have for dinner, don’t mind me.”  
“Then what about pizza? Do you like it?”  
“Of course!”  
Bokuto all of the sudden interrupted.  
“Oh can we get popcorn and ice cream? Pleaseee”  
Her mother sighed, but at the end she agreed.   
Sayaka showed you where Mako’s room was, her bathroom where you could take a shower; and some of Mako’s clothes to wear. She told you to feel right at home, which actually felt out of character, since he was colder than her siblings and mother.  
As you expected, none of the clothes fitted. At least you were smart enough to check that before getting in the shower. So, as embarrassing as it was, you went around searching for Bokuto to see if he could provide you with any solutions.  
“You just can wear some of my clothes. I don’t mind”  
With those words you became a blushing mess.  
“Are you sure it’s okay?”  
“Yeah! Here’s a t-shirt and some sweats, now go shower so we can watch a movie and eat! I asked Mako and she’s lending us ‘The Hunger Games’ to watch! It’s gonna be so much fun! Now go go! I’m gonna shower too now.”

After a quick shower, you were in the living room, wearing his clothes. ‘Man, what a weird day’.  
But you couldn’t complain. The movie was great, Jennifer Lawrence is super pretty and you really like popcorn. Plus, Bokuto was so much fun to spend time with, he just made you laugh non-stop, even though the movie wasn’t a comedy.  
Once it finished, he went over to get the ice cream (chocolate, I guess he really likes that flavor) and asked very seriously: “If we were there, who do you think would die first?”  
“Of the both of us?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Bokuto just look at my leg.”  
“Oh, shit I forgot.”  
“Hahaha no worries. Though if I wasn’t injured…”  
“Do you really think you could win against an athlete?” He said jokingly.  
“Dude I’m smarter than you! You would probably eat poisonous berries on the first day!”  
“Hey! Don’t be mean!” He sighed. “But you are right, maybe we could work as a team like Katniss and Peeta!”  
“And? You know there’s usually just a winner at the end.”  
“You said you were smart, right? Maybe you can figure out something.”  
“I guess… if not, I would probably let you kill me.”  
“Whaat? No way I’m not killing you! I want both of us to live.”   
“Don’t you think you are asking for too much?”  
“No way. It’s just that the game is unfair! No one should die, but if it’s impossible to stop it at least I want to save the people I care about.” He stood up to make his point come across.  
Without noticing it, you started crying. You were never a sensitive person, but his words seemed to affect you more than anyone elses. Maybe it was the sincerity behind them. Maybe.  
“H-hey don’t cry. D-did I do something? Did I step on your foot? Oh wait… Is it the ice cream?”  
“What are you even saying?” You laughed “Why would the ice cream make me cry? You are such a dumbass.”  
“Hey stop bullying me! It’s just that in movies girls cry when they eat ice cream so… I don’t know!”  
“I’m not bullying you, I like the fact that you are a dumbass. You are so much fun to be around, and even though we met today, you invited me into your home with a smile on your face. You are just… amazing.”   
He sat down next to you.  
“I know I am.” You weren’t surprised by that statement. “But you are amazing too.”  
“Thanks Bokuto. I’m so glad I met you today.”  
“Me too. It made my day way better, that’s for sure!”  
You went to bed thinking about the guy who left you over some stupid misunderstanding, and another guy who cared so much about you even though he just met you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, short... I am aware   
> But yeah I think the sweetness overcompensates that factor  
> hope you like it!   
> also I chose the hunger games for two reasons  
> 1\. I needed a movie from 2012 bc timeline and shit  
> 2\. I might be watching Jujutsu Kaisen, so Jennifer Lawrence came to mind instantly  
> Hope you are enjoying so far! There's another chapter before the timeskip so brace yourselves!  
> Rome <3


	5. Notifications

You woke up, feeling something pressing on your stomach. Is it one of Hana’s pranks? Wait, you are not at the campus. You opened up your eyes to see a dog, a big black dog.  
“Woah! Calm down buddy!” you heard a voice say, while the dog started licking your face to wake you up.  
“Bokuto?” You said confused, still sleepy.  
“Yep. Sorry, I didn’t want to bother you but you didn’t close the door properly and Vader got in to say good morning.” He was leaning against the door frame, arms crossed.  
“Don’t worry about it, he is cute. I didn’t see him yesterday though.”  
“Oh, he was at the vet. Mako brought him after work, I didn’t understand what the problem was but apparently he’s all good now.” He gave you a wide smile.  
“Then I’m glad Vader’s okay.” You pet the dog. It was kind of a foreign feeling to you, since you’ve never had a dog. They didn’t allow pets at your apartment complex, and that’s also the case at the campus.  
“Oh! My mom got your clothes all cleaned up for today. Here you go.” He gave them to you. “So, we should have breakfast now and go watch Hinata’s match! I have another match today, but I can stay for a while with you and maybe later you can watch me play.”  
Once he left, you changed into your clothes and went to the hall so you could go downstairs to the kitchen. Sayaka, almost at the same time got out of her room. She had her hair all messy, and she was still wearing her pajamas.  
“Going downstairs?” She asked.  
“Um… yeah.”  
“Let me help, with that leg it’s probably difficult to do so.”  
“Oh, thanks!”  
Yeah, she might be less expressive than the rest of the family but she definitely had a good heart.  
“You met Vader?” she asked.  
“Huh? Yeah! He is very cute.”  
“Yeah, they actually got it for me as a present four years ago. I was still a high school student, how crazy.”  
“So I’m guessing you are responsible for the name.”  
“Oh no doubt. I love Star Wars, so when dad came home with a black Labrador I knew I had to call him Vader. Just like he gifted me with the passion for Star Wars, he gifted me my now best friend.” “And, we arrived.”  
In the kitchen, was the whole family waiting. It actually felt overwhelming.  
“Hello Y/N-chan! It’s nice to meet you!” Said his father, and pulled you into a hug. Why is everyone in this family so nice??  
“It’s nice to meet you too sir.”  
“So Koutarou told us you are from Miyagi prefecture. Did you come here to watch the nationals?” His sister Mako asked.  
“Yep, solely for that. I was also hoping to visit around Tokyo a bit since it’s my first time here but I doubt I’ll have time since I’ll probably be leaving today.”  
“Aw, why? You can stay here all the time you want, and we would be more than happy to show you around.”  
“I would love to, seriously, but I don’t want to worry my family anymore. Besides that, I just met Bokuto yesterday and all I do is bother him being a drag.”  
“You are not bothering me!” Bokuto said while stuffing his mouth with food “Even if you leave cause of your parents I wanna see you again!”  
“Um yeah, we can see each other again, don’t worry about that. Maybe for your birthday, so I can bring you your cake.”  
“Yeah that’s awesome! And you can meet all of my friends! Well, you already met Akaashi and Kuroo. Oh! You could come with Hinata, you are friends right?”  
“We met recently but I would say we are.”  
“Hm I don’t think time matters. I mean I met you yesterday but we are friends, right?”  
“Of course we are.”

You were finally at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium. Bokuto was supposed to meet his team at his high school, but after talking with Akaashi they managed to find a way to meet directly at the gymnasium. With that said, you felt rather out of place amongst the sea of volleyball players.  
Luckily, you found Hinata along the way, who called one of his team managers, Yachi, so she could help you get to the arena to watch Karasuno’s match against Inarizaki. She was very nervous about their match but she was very nice to you, she even got you a chair to sit down right next to the field where she was staying, and stayed with you while you waited for Bokuto.  
Not so long after, your phone rang. You got a message from Bokuto (yes you exchanged numbers).  
BOKUTO  
Hey! I’m right at the other side of the field with Akaashi!  
You should come :o  
Y/N  
Alright then  
Wait for me  
Yachi, as the angel she was, helped you and you got there in no time.  
“Y/N-chan! Yacchan!” Bokuto excitedly said, hugging you both. “Oh god I forgot about your leg again… Akaashi why didn’t you remind me of that?”  
“You spent more time with her I figured you could remember such a thing.”  
“S-sorry Y/N.” he said, and for some reason his hair kind of deflated, as weird as it sounds.  
“Don’t worry about it. Let’s keep watching the match alright?”  
Yachi brought you your chair, so you were way more comfortable than last time. The match was nerve wracking; you could tell that Inarizaki had some very talented individuals, they surprised you more than anything. They knew how to play dirty too.  
After some intense plays, and some blockings from Inarizaki that made Bokuto faint, both guys had to leave with their team so they could get ready to play against Morikawa. Once you said goodbye, you decided to move to the bleachers of the stadium, yeah you knew you had an injured foot but you were stubborn and thought looking it from afar had a different impact.

“Hello again, metaphor nerd. Need help?” You encountered Kuroo again, who was with some of his teammates. You hesitantly held the hand he was stretching out to you and went up the stairs.  
You sat down with them and continued watching the match.  
“So, I’m guessing you guys won the match.” You didn’t know, but you thought their faces said it all.  
“You are right. Now let’s see how our rivals are doing.”  
“It’s tough, but I believe in them. I know they can do it.”  
“So, the Shiratorizawa student is now cheering for Karasuno?”  
“When did I tell you that I study there?”  
“You didn’t. But you said your name was Ushijima so I just put two and two together.”  
“Well, you are right. But I’m definitely cheering for Karasuno, they are representing my prefecture and Hinata’s there.”  
“You are friends with Shoyou?” Kenma asked out of nowhere.  
“Yeah, I met him when he decided to sneak into our training camp. I’m a manager for the boys’ volleyball team, so he helped me with some of the tasks.”  
“Well the crippled and the shrimpy are friends. Good to know.”  
“You are so funny Kuroo.”  
“Oh I know, I’m hilarious. You know, if I bother you that much you can always sit somewhere else.” You weren’t going to let him win, so you fought back.  
“Are you really going to make me move while I’m hurt and in pain? Wow you really are a monster.”  
“Alright, you can stay with me if you want to so badly.” He smiled, and you rolled your eyes.  
“So, how did you injure yourself?”  
“Um, Yuuji for some reason thought he could teach me a way to play volleyball that avoids me getting injured. But as you can clearly see, he failed miserably.”  
“Okay… I have a series of questions for you so get ready.”  
“Alright…” You said, confused by his enthusiasm.  
“Question number one: who is Yuuji?”  
“My boyfriend.”  
“Ouch. Didn’t know your answers were gonna hurt that bad.” “Alright next question: why do you get injured while playing volleyball?”  
“Well I have a thing called hypermobility syndrome. It causes a lot of pain in my joints, and it makes me more flexible than the average person. It’s like, more difficult to control my limbs, if that makes sense. I’m double jointed, so sometimes things pop out out place. Honestly I don’t know how else to explain it. I’m just fragile I guess, and things like sports tend to cause me injuries.”  
“Wow, I’m sorry to hear that. Do you take any medications or something like that?”  
“I mean; I can take painkillers if the pain is unbearable but there’s no cure for it.”  
“Okay, I have another question then.”  
“Tell me.”  
“How fucking dumb is your boyfriend?”  
“Um… by your tone I’m guessing the correct answer is that he’s very dumb.” You sneezed right after saying that.  
“Of course he is! There’s no way you can actually play a volleyball match like that, and if he’s an actual volleyball player I’m guessing he didn’t even hold back and hit the ball as hard as he could, you know, given that he’s a dumbass.”  
“I get it okay? But even if he’s dumb, I insisted. I really wanted to play, but then I fell after a block and my foot got twisted. I’ll never play again, don’t worry.” You looked down, you didn’t even want to continue the conversation.  
“Come on, don’t act like that. I’ll help you alright? You might not be able to play a match but maybe we can do some passes if we get a lighter ball. What do you think? Are you willing to try that?”  
“Yeah… sorry for acting so stupidly. It’s just frustrating.”  
“Why? Cause your brother’s a prodigy and you can’t even play sports?”  
“He’s my cousin.” You sneezed mid-sentence. Is someone talking about you?  
“Same shit. Don’t get all depressed cause of that. Maybe volleyball isn’t your thing, but yesterday you taught me what an analogy was. You can be talented at other stuff, alright?” “Besides… there’s more to volleyball than just playing, watching matches can teach you a lot.”  
“I guess you are right. I’ll just be a nerd with you then.” You looked up and smiled at him.  
“Yeah, just a science guy and a letters girl.”  
You sneezed once again. At this point is just frustrating.  
“Hey, are you cold or something? Don’t get sick on me, you already have your leg all messed up.”  
“Huh, I don’t know… I just started sneezing out of nowhere.”  
“Here, have my jacket.” He gave you his team jacket. “Now put it on dumbass, and let’s watch the game.” “Look, the blond Miya is about to serve.”

The match was about to finish, when you heard your phone ring. It was Wakatoshi calling.  
“Where are you Y/N?”  
“Um… in my room?”  
“I’m at the entrance of Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium. Don’t make me wait. And stop lying to me.”  
He hung up.  
“Um… I have to leave now, sorry.” You said to the Nekoma guys.  
Kuroo stood up. “Let me help you, I doubt you can get anywhere with that foot of yours.”  
“Don’t worry, I got it.” “Oh, wait your jacket...”  
“You can keep it, just don’t get sick alright?” “I’ll see you around, good luck with your brother.”  
“Cousin!”  
“Same shit! Now go idiot!”

He was furious. You just felt your soul escape your body in fear.  
“I… um…”  
“Did you know, that your delinquent boyfriend came to our campus looking around for me?”  
“I didn’t.”  
“He told me that you were here and that I should come pick you up.”  
“And… um and what did you say?”  
“Nothing, Tendou just scared him off.”  
“Yeah I figured.”  
“Now let’s go.”  
You weren’t sure about how he was going to react, but you really wanted to watch Bokuto play with his team and properly say goodbye to him.  
“Um, Toshi can we stay and watch Fukurodani play?”  
“Hmm… sure, why not?”  
His answer took you by surprise, but you went along with it and walked to the stadium with him.  
“By the way, why are you wearing a Nekoma jacket? Did you take it by mistake thinking it was yours?” Sometimes he was just such an idiot.  
“A friend lent it to me cause I was cold.”  
“So I leave you for a day and you become friends with a bunch of volleyball players?”  
“Yep. That’s how it works.”

You were glad you got to see them play again, and to see them win again. You waved at Bokuto and yelled “Congratulations! You were amazing!”  
He smiled with his arms up in the air and came to meet you.  
“Y/N-chan! I was awesome right?”  
“Yeah! I wish I could watch you play again you are so amazing.”  
“Oh… so you’re leaving then.”  
“Yep.” You said and pointed your cousin, just standing there.  
“Oh hi Ushijima-kun!” “Then I’ll chat with you until I can see you again.”  
“Totally. I’m definitely coming back to Tokyo.”  
After saying goodbye, you went back to Miyagi.

It was really late (or early, depending on how your brain works) when you got back to your dorm; you had a quick shower and went to bed. You grabbed the jacket Kuroo gave you, thinking ‘he just wanted to act all smooth with me, what an idiot.’  
You hugged the jacket, and smelt it. You could still smell his perfume.  
That jacket smelt just like him.  
You heard your phone, and grabbed it. You had two notifications.  
One from Bokuto and one from Yuuji.  
Yuuji…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh to be Y/N getting Kuroo's jacket... damn I want that too  
> so I hope you liked the chapter, and my way of developing Bokuto's family  
> probably around Wednesday I'll be posting the next chapter  
> as always, if you have anything to point out about my story write it in the comment section  
> and thanks for the kudos!  
> next chapter we'll have the timeskip yaaay  
> Rome <3


	6. Coffee for lunch

Oh to live in Tokyo… no matter how many years have passed; it still doesn’t feel like home. Sure, it does strike you up with memories but they feel more like dreams at certain times. You tried to keep in touch with the guys you met from Tokyo, but it simply didn’t work out. At first you managed to talk trough texts and even sometimes phone calls with Bokuto, but around July of that same year when you met him he suddenly stopped answering your messages. You figured you were a bother and didn’t send any more texts.  
Truth is, even though you did that, as soon as you moved to Tokyo to study business you tried reaching out to him once again. You knew about his volleyball career and about its immense growth, which you consider totally deserving, so you figured the messages you sent him through social media were never going to get read.  
Still, you became a very big fan of MSBY, which seemed inevitable considering your ongoing friendship with Hinata all throughout high school. However, getting a hold of him has been more and more difficult as years pass by, the few times you talk to each other you end up reminiscing the past, he asks you about Yachi, Hana and Ayumi; and that’s about it. You decided to not push the topic of Bokuto because you still felt like a burden.  
As far as Kuroo goes, you didn’t know anything about his current life, you remember watching his match against Karasuno with Yuuji but that’s it. That was the last time you saw his face. Though you heard some peculiar stuff about him in some of Kenma’s youtube videos. You didn’t consider yourself a gamer, but you enjoyed them and Hana was an avid fan of Kodzuken so you ended up watching some of his livestreams with her.  
On Tokyo, you are just as lost as the first day. You were lucky though, moving in with Yachi and living right next to your childhood friends Hana and Ayumi. You were lucky to have such good friends from all paths of life, Hana being your neighbor since you were five, Ayumi being the daughter of your traumatologist, and Hitoka actually helped you to fall even more in love with volleyball. Ayumi was actually the reason both you and Hana strived to get into Shiratorizawa, since she studied there basically all her life. Now both of your childhood friends are studying and selling their souls to become doctors, while Hitoka actually finished her studies and is currently working at a design company, you got your marketing degree and now you are studying business management along with a baking course (which you actually enjoy the most).  
Being Friday means you have to work as a waitress at that same baking shop where you are studying. You found out they teach you baking, serving, plating, how to be part of the customer service industry both with theory and practice. The institute makes you work in one of their shops as part of the course, some days you have to be there at 4 am baking all the pastries, others you have to bring in desserts, or take care of the coffee bar and make the drinks, be the cashier, or like today, be the waitress.  
This job felt perfect for you, talking with customers and baking, it made you think about opening your own coffee shop.  
That specific Friday started off in a very stressful manner because Sami, the waiter that works alongside you, called in sick which of course meant more work for you today, but it also meant more work for tomorrow. Now instead of just baking the tiramisu, now you also had to bring in another dessert, one with fruits for the manager to approve for next week’s menu.  
As you were entering the store, you said hi to the baking team of the day, and the manager got you a cup of coffee and a croissant. As the rest of the team started to arrive, you kept writing in your notebook and searching for ideas on what to make. ‘Peaches and caramel? Lemon and blueberry?’ you wrote down your ideas until you noticed the first customers arriving and got to work.  
You were exhausted. Working on your own was super hard, and your body language sure made it noticeable as you were getting more and more tired by the second. Being lunch time, you expected the client level to decrease, so you sat on a table and started thinking again about those two recipes wondering your mind.  
You heard the bell as the door opened and quickly stood up to greet the customer. For some reason he seemed surprised as you approached him but you didn’t give it much importance. He sat at the table in which you were before, so you went to get him a menu.  
“We don’t have many articles that you would consider lunch per say, but we do have sandwiches if you are interested in that.” You said with a smile, giving him the menu.  
“Y/N?”  
“Huh? Do we know each other?” you said, really confused.  
But then it hit you. “Kuroo? What are you doing here?”  
“Am I not allowed to be here?” He said with that classic grin on his face.  
“Of course you are, I’m just surprised... I haven’t seen you in so long.”  
“Well I am even more surprised! I didn’t know you moved to Tokyo!”  
“Yeah, once I finished high school I got here to study marketing, and now I’m studying business at XY University.”  
“You are joking right? You are studying business there?”  
“Huh? Why are you so surprised? Are you saying I can’t get into a good university?”  
“Not at all! It’s just that I so happen to be a business graduate from XY University.”  
Him? The science guy? Huh?  
“So you were always defending your sciences to end up studying business?”  
“Hey there’s no need to be so defensive, after all, I’m your senpai if you think about it.”  
“I hate you so much.” You said running your hands over your face, holding your urge to punch him.  
“Nah, you don’t.” “Hey so… How about I tell you my order, you pick something for you and we have lunch together? We can put each other up to date with our life and even talk about our high school days if you are feeling nostalgic.”  
“I’m at work, and I’m the only waitress right now.”  
“So? It’s not like anyone would go to a café for lunch, who is that crazy right?” He winked.  
You ended up agreeing, not seeing any other way out.  
You grabbed your notebook from the table and wrote his order. He asked for an American breakfast sandwich and a black coffee, which you thought was a rather ironic choice for lunch. You weren’t a big fan of that sandwich but since Sami pitched that idea up, it has been one of the store’s best-selling sandwiches.  
For yourself, you got a slice of velvet cake and a strawberry iced tea. Once you got everything ready, you joined your self-proclaimed senpai at the table.  
“So you criticize my choice and then get a slice of cake?”  
“Shut up.”  
He told you about his job in the sports promotion division of the Japan Volleyball Association, and how happy he was there, and you explained to him the way the café and your institute work.  
“That makes sense.” He said “It also seems very useful for those who want to become business owners. So how do the menus work then?”  
“So, there are things that always stay in the menu, such as croissants, some others are seasonal or themed like Christmas drinks, then there are weekly additions such as the sandwich you chose. But, because the sandwich has become a best-seller, is staying in the menu along with other products that our clients vote for.”  
“It sounds like a fun way to boost your creativity.”  
“It is. But right now I’m super stressed about that same aspect that makes it fun.” You sighed.  
“Why?”  
“Well, I explained to you that we rotate jobs, so today and tomorrow I am a waitress, Sundays are my free days, then for Monday and Tuesday I bring desserts for the store, and on Wednesdays and Thursdays I open the store and do pastries before the customers arrive. Since it’s my last year I don’t work as a cashier anymore, but I do have to pitch up ideas for the menu. We always work as pairs, so the reason why I’m alone today is because my partner Sami is sick. The problem is, tomorrow we have to pitch in two desserts; we had already decided on the classic tiramisu which I was going to bake, and she had to come up with a dessert with more refreshing undernotes, you know, for contrast. So now I’m stuck baking two desserts for tomorrow, and one of them I haven’t even decided on.”  
“Um… that is certainly a lot to handle for one person. Do you want me to help?”  
“Can you?”  
“I can try.” “What do you mean by refreshing undertones?”  
“Well, some customers want desserts that aren’t maybe as sweet, so things such as mint and fruits should always have a place in the menu.”  
“Well, if we are talking about refreshing, the first thing that comes to mind is lemon. And being honest I would love to have a slice of lemon cake with a cup of tea on such a beautiful spring day like today.”  
“Do you like blueberries?”  
“Huh? Yeah of course I do. Why do you ask?”  
“Let’s just say you will eat a lot of cake today.”

You were waiting outside of Kuroo’s office, you didn’t plan on entering the building, but a woman saw you waiting outside and insisted on you coming in. Once you told her you were waiting for Kuroo, her facial expression changed.  
“You are waiting for my boss?” She said almost at a loss for words.  
“He’s your boss?” “Well, I didn’t even know he had people in charge, I haven’t seen him since high school so…”  
“Oh, I’m the only one under his charge, I’m his secretary Soma Kuriko. Nice to meet you.”  
“Oh… I’m Ushijima Y/N, it’s nice meeting you too.”  
She kept insisting, so you agreed. Maybe she learnt that from her boss, you thought.  
As she asked questions about Kuroo’s teenage years (which in most cases you didn’t have the answer to), you scanned her image. A young woman around your age, long and thin legs, thin waist and small shoulders, slightly taller than you; big hips but smaller breasts. Maybe you were looking at her too much, you wished skirts looked that good on you. She had a stylish short haircut, her black hair made a very beautiful contrast with her pale skin and her big red lips. Her green eyes hiding behind her also green glasses with almost no makeup made you feel intimidated. Maybe that’s why you were looking at her that much.  
You sat down outside with her, as she told you, and waited for about 15 minutes. You could hear Kuroo’s voice from outside the office. He was talking in a very enthusiastic tone; you couldn’t understand much but you were sure you heard the word ‘champagne’. When he opened the door, his secretary stood up and gave him some documents.  
“Thank you, Kuriko, you can go home now. Have a nice weekend.” He said with a charming smile.  
She said goodbye and left.  
“So, you were so anxious you couldn’t wait outside?”  
“She insisted.”  
“Yeah, that what I thought. She’s intense.”

Now on the supermarket, you started listing the ingredients for the lemon and blueberry layer cake, as he grabbed the ones he was finding along the way.  
“Now we should go to that other aisle, I think I already have enough flour at home but I’m doing a lot of baking today so, just in case.”  
“Makes sense.” “So… what happened to the stupid dude that basically broke your leg?”  
“Yuuji? We broke up during my last year of high school.”  
“Did you break up with him? Or was it the other way around?”  
“Um, I did. One of his friends told me he was cheating on me, once I confirmed it I broke up with him.”  
For some reason, he started laughing.  
“What’s so funny Kuroo?” You said, visibly angry.  
“Do you always manage to attract the same kind of guys?”  
“What do you mean?”  
“I mean me.”  
You were a little shocked, what is he trying to say to you?  
“Have you ever cheated on someone?”  
“Yeah, I did. I would never do it again, if that isn’t obvious.”  
“But why did you do it?” You said, not knowing if he wouldn’t do it again because of its consequences or because with time he understood that it’s wrong and it only leaves pain.  
“Well, I actually started dating her not so long after the nationals that year I met you, she was one of Kenma’s classmates. But when I got to college I guess I just lost control. She was maybe going for a slower pace than what I was used to, so I got bored, but I didn’t want to break up with her cause that would make her sad.”  
“So you made her even sadder by cheating on her, makes sense.”  
“I know it’s horrible, like just saying it makes me nauseous, it makes me hate myself for hurting someone that was nice to me. Even if we weren’t in love, she didn’t deserve that pain. I was just as much of an asshole as your boyfriend.” At least he made it sound as if he learnt from his mistakes.  
“Yeah… I agree. But if you realize what your mistake was, if you own up to it then it’s fine. You just have to grow up and treat people the way they deserve to be treated.”  
“You’re so smart.” He patted your head. For your surprise, he didn’t sound as his sarcastic self.

Finally, you arrived home with that unexpected visit from the past.  
“Hitoka-chan! I arrived! Also don’t freak out but there’s a guest alongside me.” You said (more like screamed) as you entered the apartment.  
The door of her room opened, she was drying her hair with a towel with one hand, and holding a juice box with the other. She walked to the living room and then realized that there was a guy at her home, one that she has seen before.  
“K-Kuroo?” She squeezed the juice box unconsciously and sprayed it all over Kuroo’s face. “Oh God, I’m sorry, I’m sorry ahhh… I’ll clean it up I’m so sorry.”  
“Don’t worry about it.” Kuroo said, wiping his face with his hand. “It’s not even that much juice.” He lied. It even stained his shirt.  
As you left the groceries at the kitchen, Hitoka started wiping Kuroo’s face with some paper towels.  
“I’m so sorry Kuroo, I’m sorry… Oh God I’m touching your face I’m sorry for that too…”  
“Hitoka-chan you gotta stop assaulting my visitors and apologizing every two seconds.” You sighed.  
“Oh so this happens all the time?” Kuroo asked.  
“Y-yeah. I guess I just get too nervous.” Hitoka said, still visibly nervous.  
“Don’t worry, next time we’ll just go to my place, right Y/N-chan?”  
“As you please. But right now I need my kitchen and my utensils, so my place was unavoidable.” You said while taking the groceries out and placing them in the counter. “Okay so, Hitoka, how does a lemon and blueberry layer cake sound?”  
“It sounds super yummy!”  
“Great! I’m doing that cake first, I can do the tiramisu once Kuroo leaves.”  
Hitoka went back to her room, and you two started making the cake.  
“So… you get a lot of visitors, huh?” He said with an obvious connotation.  
“Shut up. I’m not like that.” You sighed and decided to forget about that. “Okay so I’ll do the batter, I will actually do two variants that I’m thinking of and we will try which one is best, and you can do the cream cheese frosting. It’s easy to do, but I need a lot of it.”  
“Yes chef.”  
“I’m not a chef dumbass. Now listen carefully.”  
After explaining, you turned on some music and got to your own job.  
“So… Y/N-chan, you are friends with the Karasuno manager.” Kuroo asked. Where is he going with this?  
“Yeah, we became really good friends. I guess it’s a manager thing.”  
“I see. What about Hinata, Bokuto and Akaashi then? Have you seen them again?” Bingo. That’s what he truly wanted to know.  
“Well, during high school I was really close with Hinata, once he left to Brazil we kinda fell apart. But I still consider him my friend and I watch every match of his.” “Akaashi, well I didn’t even talk to him much back then when I met you guys, and when I saw him the next year I didn’t either… for some reason it just felt awkward.”  
“Hm, I see. Has Hinata ever invited you to his matches?”  
“Yeah! But, yeah I decided not to go.”  
“Let me guess, it felt awkward.”  
“Yeah… how did you-“  
“Bokuto.”  
The music filled the silence you two were sharing.  
“Why do you think that?” You asked.  
“I mean, your silence said it all, but you also avoided telling me if you were still in touch with him. Did something happen?”  
“Um, well I thought we got along fairly well.”  
“It did seem like it. I actually thought you two knew each other for years.” He interrupted. “Sorry, go on.”  
You rolled your eyes and continued.  
“Well, we kept chatting for about 5 or 6 months, then I told him that I was going back to Tokyo that July, and that we could see each other again if he wanted. He saw my message but he never replied.” “I… messaged him again some other times but I never got a reply. Once I started seeing him on TV I gave up, and decided to stay just as a fan of his work.”  
“That is so weird, considering he couldn’t stop talking about you back then. I even asked him for your number and he got hilariously angry and never gave it to me… so I’m not sure what happened there.” Kuroo took some of the frosting with a spoon and tried it. “Wow this is good! I’m a genius!”  
“That’s my recipe you idiot.” “But since you finished please mix what’s in the green bowl while I mix the content in the pink one.” “Like this.” You showed him how to do the folded mixing so it can be more spongey, and continued with your batter.  
Realizing it was too liquid, you went over to add more flour, but before you could stop it, the bag slipped from your hand because of the weight and you ended up with way more flour than what you needed.  
“Shit.” You said in between your teeth.  
“Remember, measuring has to be very accurate.” He said and laughed. “Looks like you didn’t pay enough attention during chemistry class.”  
You grabbed a cup, and put there all of the excess flour. Then, you threw it all on his hair.  
“Fuck you.” You said, but he looked very amused by your reaction.  
You realized one of your favorite songs started playing, which immediately put you in a good mood and you started singing it without even noticing it. Suddenly you heard a voice accompanying yours. Of course it was Kuroo, and of course he had a great voice… that motherfucker seems to have everything. You thought about how many he might have swoon over with his singing.

After placing about half of each batter in the oven, both of you sat down at the dinner table waiting.  
“So now it’s my turn to ask.” You said.  
“Ask away, I have nothing to hide. You know, at this age in which my head is covered in white and grey hairs, there’s no need for secrets. I’m just a wise old man willing to give all of his wisdom.”  
“Don’t worry, you are not old. You’re just an idiot.” “Well, then. I’m guessing you are still friends with Kenma.”  
“Of course I am. But why the question?”  
“Well, let’s just say I’m really used to his face and voice because of my best friend Hana.”  
“Oh so she’s a fan.”  
“Oh totally. She even studies while playing his videos as background noise.”  
“She’s insane then.”  
“Maybe you should lower your voice, she lives next door.” “I mean, maybe she is insane, but she is always stressed out because of college and she always says his voice and the way he acts are very calming and helpful for her.” “So yeah, just thank him on my behalf. Japan is about to get a great doctor real soon, and he has definitely been a great help with that.”  
“That makes me really happy. I will tell him that once I see him tomorrow, maybe we can even organize a meeting between the two of them.”  
You smiled.  
Then you got a great idea (because you love embarrassing your friends apparently). You turned off the music, and signaled to Kuroo to get up.  
“Put your ear against this wall.” You whispered.  
He was hesitant, but did it anyways. And you both could hear Kenma’s voice, she was watching one of his videos.  
“That’s insane.”  
“For sure.”  
“Oh, Y/N if you don’t mind, I don’t want to keep being an old man so if you can show me where the bathroom is…”  
“Oh, yeah sure.”  
While he was in the bathroom, you went to your room to see if you could find the pictures you took at the Spring High playoffs and at the Nationals while you were a manager. You even took a picture with Kenma, who was surprisingly nice to you, so you wanted to show it to Kuroo. You grabbed the box under the bed, then sat down and started searching on that box full of volleyball memories.

A touch in your shoulder startled you, you were too in the zone to even notice that Kuroo entered your room.  
“Cool room, less girly than what I expected from a baker that’s for sure.”  
“You do love stereotypes huh?”  
“What can I say? If they make people mad then of course I like them.” He looked at the box and sat down next to you. “What do you got there?”  
You gave him the photos. “Memories.”  
“Wow you managed to get a picture with Kenma? That’s crazy! He might have been in love with you then, and he never told me.” He cleaned up a fake tear from his face. “They grow up so fast.”  
“Ha ha so funny.”  
He kept watching your pictures, most of them with Shiratorizawa team members, and Karasuno members.  
“Nice job, photographer-chan. So, what else is there?”  
Then you remembered.  
“Uh… death?”  
He grabbed the box, very curious of what you were hiding. Inside the box there were an orange and violet bracelet that Hitoka made for you, notebooks with annotations from the team, a pencil case where Goshiki wrote all over ‘Shiratorizawa for the win!’, some melted chocolates in a bag that Tendou gave you, cards that the team wrote for you, and lots of other memories. At the bottom of the box, Kuroo’s jacket waited to be picked up by his owner.  
“Well it’s nice to see I made it into the memory box and that the owl didn’t. Guess you are more attached to me than what I thought.” He winked.  
You placed a finger inside your mouth and acted as if you were gagging.  
“That’s the only thing I have from those Nationals, and I actually learnt a lot going there so I wanted something to represent that. But you can have it back if you want.” You got up and went to the kitchen to check the oven.

After trying both recipes, you both agreed that the pink bowl mix won over the green bowl mix.  
“It’s way better, the blueberries don’t stick to the bottom and it’s way more spongey.” He said, happily eating.  
“Well that sponginess is because of the mixing. Which means that my mixing technique was better than yours.”  
“Didn’t expect any less from you.” “Also can I please take some cake with me home?”  
“Of course.” You happily said, knowing that your recipe is going to be the next best seller.

“You know, before I leave I thought I should invite you to a party.”  
“Huh? Why? The playboy doesn’t have anyone to go with?” You jokingly said.  
“It’s actually from work. They always give us a plus one, and I think it could be a good opportunity for you, you know to meet some people from the business world.”  
“Yeah, I like that idea. I guess sometimes you have good ones.” You said laughing.  
“I always have good ideas. Remember that.”  
“Sure, sure.”  
“Okay then, give me your phone and I’ll pick you up next weekend. We can arrange all of the formalities later.”  
“Yup, sounds good.”  
You opened the door, and he stepped outside. But before you closed the door he said “Next time I want to try that peach and caramel pie.”  
You closed the door, hating yourself for being so gullible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!  
> Ugh I'm so in love with Kuroo bye  
> Also I wanted to point out that I was listening to "I bet you look good on the dancefloor" by Arctic Monkeys while writing the baking scene, so I pictured Kuroo singing as Alex Turner omg  
> Maybe you don't even listen to them but still  
> Kuroo as Alex Turner is my new headcannon  
> Here's the song I'm so sorry https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-wwK5QVv1Y it's a live version, I just love live versions ugh  
> Hope you like the chapter! I'll probably post the party chapter this weekend  
> Oh and lastly, if you notice any mistakes pls tell me, English is not my mother tongue so yeah... there could be mistakes along the way  
> Bye now!


	7. Permission to dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rather than a summary, I just wanted to say that there is some mention about sex at the end of this chapter(only mention), just in case some of you are uncomfortable. I will explain more about that after the chapter so if you wanna know read the notes. Also I will clarify some points about the story and the character of the reader.

The meeting for the menu went wonderfully, your manager loved both desserts. You also were getting prepared for a week alone, since Sami ended up having more than just a stomachache. Turns out it was appendicitis, so as soon as they noticed he got a surgery. He needs to take care of himself, but you were probably going to visit him anyway.  
You were very happy, because after a long time you were going to finally see your dear friend Goshiki Tsutomu. You decided to meet with him at a park near your jobplace.  
“Tsushiki-chan!” You ran up to him, pulling him into a big hug. “How are you? My favorite volleyball player!”  
“Stop saying dumb stuff Y/N… did you watch my last match?” He blushed. He clearly liked being praised.  
“Of course! We all did! Hana, Hitoka, and your beautiful girlfriend Ayumi was there too.”  
“I’m so lucky to have you all supporting me… seriously, thanks for sticking with me since high school.”  
“Dude, don’t thank me, I do it because I want to.” “Now let’s go! I have so much to tell you!”  
You told him about Sami, the whole fiasco of yesterday’s workday, and about your reencounter with Kuroo.  
“So he knew all along about your recipe, right?” He asked, trying to keep up with the pace of the conversation.  
“Right! So he just said lemon seemed like a good idea, and I mentioned my plan.”  
“He probably was expecting for you to get happy, since someone would like your cake and eventually buy it, and he was expecting that you would invite him over to try a slice.”  
“Are we still talking about cake, Goshiki?”  
“That depends on what your intentions are with him. You said he invited you to a party, right?”  
“Yeah, it’s from his job. He works at Japan Volleyball Association, and he suggested it apparently because I’m studying business.”  
“That’s bullshit and you already know that, but whether you go or not is your choice.” He then looked at you, shocked. “Is the party tonight?”  
“How did you-“  
“I’m invited too, and so is most of the Japanese volleyball scene.”  
“Oh.” Oh God, Toshi could be there. And Shoyou… and Bokuto. Oh God.  
You were already panicking.  
“Hey? Are you still with me? Don’t freak out.”  
“U-uh sure.” You took a deep breath. “So, are you going with Ayumi?”  
“Yeah! Ayu is driving, so if you want you two can come with us.”  
Ayumi doesn’t drink, which meant you always had an alternative ride in case of emergency.  
“Sure! I’ll talk to Kuroo about it, and then confirm with you two.”

Once you arrived to your building, Goshiki went to his girlfriend’s apartment and you went to your own, which actually smelled like burnt plastic.  
You saw Hitoka crying in the ground, hugging her legs, and the toaster caught on fire.   
“Yachi!”  
You quickly dealt with the fire, but when you asked for an explanation she simply said that she was sorry for melting your plastic spoon.  
You got her to her room and made her some tea so she could calm down. Her job and its deadlines were definitely getting the worst of her.  
Once she calmed down, you went to your room and decided to give Kuroo a call. He was more than happy knowing that he got a free ride, and he also told you he was going to arrive with some little surprises. Should you be concerned? Hopefully not, but it’s Kuroo.  
Suddenly you heard someone knock on your door. Ayumi and Goshiki were standing there, looking as if they just went through hell.  
“Hana is going to kill us all.” Goshiki said.  
Apparently it was Hana’s first free weekend since many, many months, and she was visibly angry because you three were going to a party and she was staying alone. She never had many friends, she always found it difficult to make friends and you made it your job to help her with those issues since she moved next to your house. Probably, she just felt betrayed knowing that her only friends were leaving her alone.  
“All I do is study and study. And I want to become a neurosurgeon, but I feel so alone when you all leave me like that. I just want to play videogames with you, watch videos, laugh and have fun. I know you like going out, I know that you deserve to go to the party, and that Hitoka needs this time for work… but still.” It’s been so long since you’ve seen her like that. It suddenly felt like you were moving to Tokyo once again.  
“I’m sorry. Had I known you felt this way I would’ve never said yes to Kuroo. But I can’t do anything about it now besides telling you that as soon as I leave the party I will come to your apartment to play videogames, no matter how tired I am.” You said, and went to hug her.  
“You suck at videogames.” She laughed as she wiped her tears. “I can’t even imagine how you play being tired.”   
“Well that’s what I’m willing to do for you.” 

About 10 minutes after you finished getting ready you heard the doorbell ringing.  
“Surprise!” There it was Kuroo standing there, holding a bouquet of roses, and standing next to him was Kenma. Was he invited to the party too?  
“Um, hi?” You were very confused, and you had reasons to be.  
“Oh, Kenma’s not going to the party. He was invited but he hates parties, so he just came up with an excuse.” Kuroo smiled at you and gave you the flowers. “For you.”  
“Thanks. Um… did you know that roses are edible?”  
“Is that your way of telling me you are going to use them for a dessert?” Kuroo laughed at your comment.  
“Well yeah, what did you expect me to do?” “Also if he isn’t going to the party why is he here?”  
“To meet Hana.” Kenma finally announced.  
“Really?” She was going to be so happy. “Let’s go next door then!”  
As you expected, Hana was more than happy.  
“Did you seriously come here just to meet me?”  
“Well yeah, Kuroo’s leaving and since I said I was falling sick to not go to the party, I can’t do a livestream as I planned to. Kuroo told me that you watch my videos and you like playing videogames so I thought hanging out with you sounded like a good idea.”  
“Yeah! This is so cool! Thank you for coming, really. I was having a really shitty day so playing videogames with you sounds awesome.”   
They were getting along very well, and you couldn’t help but notice all the similarities between their personalities. Maybe that’s why Hana finds his videos so comforting.  
“So, are we ready to go?” Ayumi said, finally leaving her room, where she had been with Goshiki until then.  
“Yeah, more than ready.” Kuroo said. “It’s nice to meet you two, I’m Kuroo Tetsurou.”  
After the brief introduction, you said goodbye to Hana and Kenma and went straight to Ayumi’s car.  
You felt underdressed compared to everyone else, but in your defense you didn’t have that much time lo plan your outfit. Luckily, Ayumi’s sister is about your size so she lent you an emerald slip midi dress to wear, and you just went with those always convenient silver heels you own.  
Ayumi looked gorgeous with her long gold dress, that contrasted so well with her dark hair; with those high slits to the sides of the dress that accentuated her long legs, paired with some gold and black stilettos. Her makeup was rather simple, but as she always said, with her blue eyes it’s more than enough.   
You could tell her boyfriend was matching, wearing a black suit with a black shirt with vertical dashed lines in gold. Surprisingly he wasn’t wearing a tie, or a bowtie.  
Kuroo was wearing a maroon suit, with a black shirt and a black tie. You definitely thought he looked attractive, but there was no way you were going to tell him that.  
The venue was gigantic, which made you once again feel out of place, and wonder if any familiar faces would be there.  
After getting inside the venues, you searched for your tables; Kuroo and you were at table 8 with his coworkers, and Goshiki and Ayumi were at table 17 with the rest of his team.  
“Don’t worry about it too much, we can switch places later. For now, let’s eat, hear the speeches and drink a lot of alcohol.” Kuroo said after seeing your expression.  
“Cheers.”  
After what seemed like an eternity, the music finally started playing and Kuroo invited you to dance.  
“You know, that dress looks great on you, almost as if it was made for you.” Kuroo said with a smirk.  
“Well thanks, funnily enough it’s not mine.”  
“Hm, maybe you should steal it then cause you look beautiful.”  
“Really? Never thought green was my color.” You smiled, as he twirled you around. “Let’s go find some drinks.”  
On your way to the bar, you saw a familiar orange haired individual.  
“Shoyou?” You touched his shoulder and he turned around.  
“Y/N! What are you doing here?” He looked at you up and down “Wow you look so hot!” Was he drunk already?  
“Thanks! You look amazing too! Your outfit is so stylish; did you pick it yourself?”  
He was wearing a lavender suit, with a white shirt with small lavender flowers and a lavender bowtie.  
“Actually it was my girlfriend!”  
“You got a girlfriend?”  
“Yep. Her name is Luana. She’s at our table if you want to meet her.”  
You said yes, and told Kuroo where you were going, as he was still taking your drinks.

At the thirteenth table were waiting Miya Atsumu, two girls you didn’t know, Akaashi Keijji, and Bokuto Koutarou.  
“Y/N, meet Luana Da Silva.”  
“It’s really nice to meet you.” She pulled you into an unexpected hug. “Sorry if my Japanese isn’t great, I’m actually Brazilian.”  
“Don’t worry, you’re doing great.” You looked at her magnificent outfit. “Wow you’re so beautiful.”  
She laughed and thanked you. She was a tall dark skinned woman, with an enviable figure. You could tell she exercised and took well care of herself. The nude colored dress hugged her body beautifully, and her colorful makeup matched the lavender earrings that framed her face along with her curly hair.  
“Y/N?” A familiar voice said.  
“Hi Bokuto, what’s up?” You said, trying to stay calm.  
“Um… are you angry at me?”  
“Huh?”  
“Y-you stopped talking to me all of the sudden so I th-“  
“I did what? I never stopped talking to you! I sent you messages every day for about a year! Once I started seeing you on TV, I just thought ‘might as well give up, he’s too famous, he won’t notice me.’”  
“But I didn’t get any texts!” People were turning around to watch you two. It sure seemed like a fight.  
“Y/N, do you remember when Bokuto stopped answering your texts?” Akaashi decided to intervene.   
“About 6 months after meeting you. So July 2013, something like that. I told him I was visiting Tokyo again, that we could meet up. He saw my message, but he never answered.”   
“Makes sense. He was mugged.”  
“Huh?”   
“We were on a trip with our highschool actually, and a guy in a motorcycle took the phone from his hand, as he was texting in the middle of the street like the idiot he is.”  
“Oh… now I remember.” Bokuto said. “I changed my phone.”  
“Oh my God you’re an idiot… how do you expect me to text you if you changed your number?”  
“I- I don’t know!”  
“And you’ve seen Hinata! You could’ve asked him for my number too!”  
“I’m sorry Y/N…”  
“It’s okay I guess.”  
“Are you forgiving me then?” He said enthusiastically.   
“Hm, you gotta put more effort than that.”  
Now that you two calmed down, you sat down at their table and met everyone. There was Miya Atsumu, just as handsome as you imagined, wearing an all-black suit, with a woman who was wearing a black jumpsuit. Next to them was Akaashi, who also looked very stylish with his beige suit and light blue shirt. Bokuto was wearing a light grey suit, with a white shirt and a blue tie. You might have been staring too much, but who cares.  
“So, is Akaashi your date?”  
“Yeah, I actually didn’t know who to invite. I asked my sisters but they were busy, and Akaashi was willing to come.” Bokuto said.  
“What about you?” You asked Atsumu.  
“Oh, I’m with my twin. I actually had a date, but she dumped me as embarrassing as it is. Osamu just laughed at me, but decided to come, I’m guessing because of the free food.”  
“Oh, that’s cool. I actually thought she was your date.” You pointed at the redheaded woman who was texting constantly on her phone.  
“Oh, she’s Emiko, our manager. She is Sakusa’s plus one.” Bokuto said.

“So, are you part of the association or are you someone’s date?” Atsumu asked you.  
“Oh, I’m actually here with Kuroo. I’m not sure if you know him, but Shoyou and Bokuto do.”  
Just as you said that, you saw three figures approaching the table. One of them was Kuroo, then next to him was who you thought to be Osamu, and Sakusa.  
“Finally found the thirteenth table! You guys sure are unlucky, huh?” Kuroo said trying to be funny.  
“Be glad that you found us on the way. You were clearly very lost.” Sakusa said. His outfit was probably your favorite of them all; a light pink suit along with a white turtleneck. Compared to him, Osamu looked very casual and relaxed, with a black suit paired with a grey t-shirt and grey sneakers.  
Bokuto and Kuroo greated each other with a hug, but for some reason Bokuto seemed sad to you.  
“So, let’s go to the dancefloor.” Kuroo said grabbing your hand.  
“Um, Kuroo… I actually wanted to ask you if I could dance with her.” Bokuto stood up, almost confronting Kuroo.  
“You don’t have to ask me. Ask her.”

You were actually very happy you got to dance with Bokuto, you missed him and his dumb jokes.  
“So, is this enough for me to be forgiven?”  
“You actually didn’t need to do anything; I was going to forgive you anyways.”  
“Really?”  
“Yes. I will always forgive you. Plus, I’m really happy I get to dance with you.”  
“You are? And what about your boyfriend?”  
“Huh? I don’t have a boyfriend.”  
“Oh… I thought Kuroo was… nevermind.”  
“We aren’t dating or anything like that, so don’t worry.” You smiled. “Let’s have fun!”

Just like that, you danced the night away, along with way too much alcohol. You danced with so many people, even with some you just met. But everyone was so different. Kuroo had the flirtiest approach, pulling you closer to his body, placing his hands on your hips, and talking to you so close to your face that you could almost kiss. It definitely made your heart stop more than once. Shoyou twirled you around so much, it got you way too dizzy; and his girlfriend was a professional on the dancefloor. Atsumu tried to play it cool, pulling you closer just like Kuroo, but stepping on your feet, and cursing and apologizing in the process. He was definitely the most talkative while dancing, but you didn’t complain, it was actually quite amusing. On the other hand, his brother was way more relaxed; keeping the distance but still playing around, singing snippets of the songs and talking to you as if he had known you all his life. Akaashi was rather stiff, probably because he didn’t drink much, but he clearly knew how to dance and looked flawlessly while doing so.  
Bokuto was the most memorable. It felt like a reencounter, more like a hug to the sound of music rather than dancing. He clearly felt guilty, and he was the one who drank the most by far. And you, as the idiot you are, decided to join him with that amount of alcohol. He was constantly complementing you, making you blush. Dancing with him made time stop, all you could do was look at his eyes, and his lips.  
After the main course you found your friends Ayumi and Goshiki, who were actually talking to Toshi and Kageyama. You were quite surprised to see your cousin wearing a white suit, with a blue shirt and a white tie; while Kageyama was wearing just the opposite: blue suit, white shirt, blue tie.  
You just laughed at the sight of that.  
“It wasn’t planned, you dumbass!” Kageyama said angrily.  
You group-hugged Wakatoshi and Kageyama while saying “I missed you soooo much.”  
Yeah, you were drunk. Very drunk.  
“You’re drunk.” Your cousin said being his smart self.  
Of course, since you were drunk, you danced with all of them. Kageyama was surprisingly good, he even got you flustered with how close he got sometimes. Your cousin, as always, just focused on not stepping on you. Goshiki was just like you remembered; a cute mess who only knows the basics but charms you over with his smile. It actually made you feel like you were back in high school.  
With Ayumi you just jumped around singing every single song horribly and shaking your hips like two idiots. You suddenly stopped after hearing some screams that clearly sounded like Hinata’s.

Following the sound, you found Hinata, Atsumu, Bokuto, Kuroo, Akaashi and Osamu jumping around like insane people. They were way too drunk; everyone was missing their blazers, Shoyou had his shirt open all the way just like Atsumu, who was wearing his tie as a headband. Bokuto had his tie as a headband too, but sadly his shirt was buttoned up. Kuroo had his headband too, but his shirt was open leaving little to the imagination. Akaashi was acting completely different than what you were used to; having no shirt at all, swinging it around in the air while singing enthusiastically. Osamu had his shirt on, but he was wearing Hinata’s bowtie as a tiara and he was also wearing Luana’s gigantic earrings. Luana was recording it all and laughing.  
Ayumi tried to stop you but you approached them. Atsumu grabbed you and hugged you way too tightly. “Oh my God I missed you!” then he turned around to his friends “Look it’s the girl with the green dress I told you about! Can you believe I danced with her?”  
You were having so much fun, jumping around with them. Bokuto even carried you bridal style while spinning around, it was cute but you had to really focus not to puke.   
“Hey bro stop; you are gonna make her puke.” Kuroo stopped him, and you stood up.  
“Okay everyone, I have an idea! Let’s make these three ladies vote for who has the best body out of all of us!” Shoyou said enthusiastically, probably knowing his girlfriend would vote for him.  
“Hm… sure.” You said “But to make it fair, we should be able to see everyone’s body.” You approached Bokuto and opened his shirt up all the way. “There you go.” You ran your hand through his muscles, you were clearly drunk but enjoying yourself. Needless to say, Bokuto was surprised by your actions. “And you should take your shirt off.” You pointed at Osamu, and he took it off.  
Clearly happy with your doings, you went back with the girls.  
“I think we should get to see them up close.” Luana said approaching Hinata. “But I already know who I’m voting for.”  
Ayumi was clearly in shock, you could almost feel her searching for Goshiki.  
“Miya… Atsumu.” She said almost whispering. “Now I’ll go find my boyfriend.” And just like that she ran away.  
The boys looked at you expecting for an answer.  
“Well, if you want my honest opinion, you all should take those ridiculous things out of your hair.” You got closer to Kuroo and signaled him to crouch down so you could take his tie. “That looks way better.”  
Just as the others were taking their ties, Kuroo grabbed his and wrapped it around your neck “You are right, it looks way better on you.” Just like that he pulled from the tie, and gave you a deep kiss. You could feel his tongue wondering in your mouth. He tasted like alcohol. You continued the kiss, putting your hand on his face as he kept tightening up the tie around your neck. What were you doing?  
You pulled away as soon as you realized, surprised and very confused by what just happened. You got hooked into his game.  
“That’s cheating.” You said. “Kuroo you are disqualified.” You were trying to hide how happy that made you.  
The look in his eyes clearly said ‘worth it’, just like his lips stained with your lipstick said ‘I would do it again’.  
Looking at those handsome boys, you just smiled, you hugged Bokuto and said “I choose this one.” Then you looked at him with a smile.

Once everyone started leaving, you searched for Goshiki and Ayumi with Kuroo. Since you couldn’t find them, you sent Ayumi a message.  
Y/N  
Ayu baby where are u two

AYUMI  
Eating out w kags and ur cousin  
Wanna come?

They were eating even more food?  
You asked Kuroo what he thought about it.  
“Let’s just take a cab. Don’t worry, I’ll pay.”

Y/N  
We’re just gonna take a cab and go home  
Thanks for the invite tho

You said goodbye to the gorgeous volleyball players, of course including Bokuto.  
“Bye Y/N, you got my number now so pleaseee talk to me.” He said, while being held by Osamu.  
“I will, don’t worry.” You gave him a kiss on the cheek.  
“Ah that’s not fair! I want what he got!” He pointed at Kuroo.  
You just laughed and said goodbye to everyone.

Once you stepped into the cab you fell asleep.  
“Hey, Y/N, we arrived.” Kuroo said waking you up.  
“Huh?” You opened the door and looked outside. “Where are we?”  
“My place.”  
You got out, you were a little surprised, but it was a pleasant surprise since it meant you both were on the same page.  
Now inside the building, you got into the elevator with Kuroo, who pressed the button for the tenth floor. As the doors closed, he started talking.  
“So, I have to say I’m very sad. You picked that damn owl instead of me.”  
“You were disqualified.”  
“But it was worth it right? I mean, you clearly liked the kiss.”  
“Maybe, who knows?”  
“I know. Do you need me to tell you what you want, or are you aware of that?”  
“You don’t have to. Just tell me what you want.”  
The doors of the elevator opened, and you two stepped outside. As you walked to his apartment, he kept talking.  
“I thought I was very obvious. When I met you, I knew I wanted you but I didn’t know why or how; I just wanted to be around you. It wasn’t until I found you again that I learnt… that I want you naked in my bed, I want to fuck you, I want you to scream my name. I don’t want you to love me, and I don’t want to fall in love with you either.” He pinned you against the door of his apartment and grabbed your neck “But when someone chokes you like this, I want you to think of me and only me. Now tell me, what do you want?” You felt his lips coming closer to yours.  
“I want you.”  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... did ya like it? Cause I did.  
> About next chapter, it will definitely be 18+ so if you don't like it you can skip it.  
> It will probably take me more time to post for multiple reasons  
> 1\. I have exams pretty soon  
> 2\. I injured my right wrist and it's pretty painful to write  
> 3\. I want the next chapter to at least be decent. I don't have any experience writing smut but I want to try my best to at least not make it cringey. 
> 
> Now about the reader...  
> As you probably can remember I said the reader has Hypermobility Syndrome. The reason why? Well, I have that and I thought it was a good idea for the story (and its actually the reason behind my most recent injury).  
> This clarification is mostly due to the fact that the situations that the reader has lived (or is going to live) due to her syndrome are things that I have gone through. Hopefully that makes the story more realistic.  
> Okay that's about it. I'll probably post next weekend but I depend on the healing process of my wrist (which as you can see I'm taking very seriously by writing this long ass note).


	8. My advice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heyy  
> sorry for the delay, i had quite the injury (yes, another one, i'll explain at the end notes) so it was quite complicated to find the time and energy to write  
> i am updating two chapters today so have fun i guess  
> also i hope my writing isn't too cringey  
> some 18+ stuff during this chapter but i'm sure you all like that

“I want you.” Those three words were exactly what he wanted to hear.  
He pinned you to the door and started kissing you. His breath smelt like alcohol and chewing gum. You opened your mouth, letting his tongue wander inside. The pace of the kiss was faster, rougher than the first.   
He opened the door with one hand, while pulling you closer to him by the waist. You put your arms around his neck, he lifted you up and you wrapped your legs around his torso, and kicked your heels off. He closed the door with one hand, but never pulling apart from the kiss.  
“You said the dress was borrowed right?” Kuroo said, breathing heavily.  
“Yeah.”  
He layed you on the couch at the living room.  
“Take it off.” He was standing next to the couch, like waiting for you to do whatever he said.  
You started taking your dress off, and he took his jacket and his tie off.  
Now laying there in your underwear you were starting to realize what was happening. You hugged your legs against your torso, feeling ashamed of your body.  
“Hey.” He crouched down. “Why are you doing that?” He brushed away the hairs that were covering your face. “You know; your body is beautiful.” He caressed your cheek, and put his thumb on your lower lip. “Hey, look at me. I want you to be comfortable, if you are not comfortable we are not doing this.”  
“I am comfortable. I want to do this.” As you said that, he smiled and kissed you.  
He got on top of you, and started leaving a trace of kisses all over your neck and collarbone.   
“Hey, Y/N, I hope we are on the same page.” He put his hand under your bra and started playing with your nipple. “You know; I’ve already said this but I don’t want to be in a relationship. We’ll probably see each other around more often but I don’t want you to misinterpret my feelings. We are just friends having fun.” He smirked, admiring the way your body reacted even when he was barely doing anything. “So, what do you say?” He pinched your nipple harder.  
“Ah-“ You covered your mouth and took a deep breath, you didn’t want to moan. “I agree. We are friends.” And you truly believed that, you weren’t lying to him. Of course you felt some kind of sexual attraction, but besides that he just felt like a friend to you, you didn’t want to tie yourself to him. You were determined to not commit the same mistakes again, confusing attraction with love. Falling in love is just a miscalculation that only leaves pain as an option.  
“I thought I told you to get comfortable baby.” Suddenly you felt his hot tongue against your nipple, as he started touching the other with his hand. You couldn’t stop the noises coming from your mouth, and a smirk appeared on his face.  
“If you want me to get comfortable, take your shirt off.” Now you were the one smirking, looking up to the sight of his muscles and the shirt on the floor.  
Getting closer to you, he grabbed your neck softly till you were forehead to forehead. He let go of your neck, and started kissing it, sucking, biting as if you were his prey. You felt like his prey, but you didn’t mind it. You thought he probably was like that with everyone he took home.  
Your hands wondered all over his body, his strong arms, his back, his abs. Feeling the heat of his body, and feeling your eyes watering up as he started touching your clit slowly with two fingers. He kissed your cheek and smiled as he was sliding his fingers inside you.  
“W-wait!” You said out of breath.  
He stopped immediately, took his hand out and looked at you. “Did something happen? Do you want to stop?” He was concerned, he probably thought he did something wrong. He was way more careful and respectful that what you initially thought of him.  
“I- no.” “I… um actually I wanted to give you head.” Why were you getting nervous now?  
He was confused.  
“Huh? That’s it?”   
“Well, yeah.” You laughed. “Is it that weird?”  
He gave you a kiss on the forehead and then stood up.  
“You should get on your knees now.” He said while taking off his belt.  
“Let me do that.”  
He smirked. “Hey, do you think you’re gonna win an award or something if you surprise me?” He looked down at you, while you were sliding down his pants.  
“I don’t need an award.” You said confidently, yet now that you can see his dick, you were wondering how you were going to fit it all in your mouth.  
Placing one of your hands on his side and the other stroking his cock you started slowly moving your tongue around and placing it on its tip. He grabbed your hair as you fitted all of his member in your mouth. As you moved your head back and forth you could hear his respiration accelerate, you couldn’t stop a smile from leaving your lips just knowing your effects on him.  
“Fuck Y/N… aren´t you a pleaser.” He lowered his sight and met your eyes. “You whore.” He pulled your head closer to his torso, as you felt his cock touching the back of your throat. “Come on, you can do better right? I mean, you were the one who asked for it.”  
With tears falling down your eyes, you continuously swirled your tongue around his dick as he facefucked you. The mixture of saliva and precum in your mouth only made you crave for more.  
“Mhmm…” You muttered unconsciously.   
“Ah- is it not enough for you baby? Come on, open your mouth.”  
You followed his orders.  
“Good. What a good slut you are.” You shivered every time he insulted you, it aroused you so much, without a doubt you’ve been always attracted to this type of guys. “But this isn’t even near enough for you, is it?” He grabbed your face. “Let’s go to my bedroom.”  
As you stood up, he grabbed you by the waist, and once again you wrapped your legs around his torso but this time you could feel him near your entrance.  
“Ahh fuck… fuck me Kuroo.” You hid your face on his shoulder and hugged his body as you felt yourself getting wetter and wetter. The two past months filled with work and exams sure gave you no time to fool around with one night stands, all of the sudden it seemed like you couldn’t wait anymore.  
“I’m on it.” He laid you on his bed. “Let me play around for a bit. I’m sure you’ll like it.” While deeply kissing you, his fingers found their way inside you. “So? What do you think?”  
“Keep touching me. Don’t stop.”  
He grinned. As his fingers penetrated you while touching your clit, he started leaving a trace of kisses all over your body, kissing your thighs and biting them as he opened them up.   
“Fuck, you are so wet. You truly are a whore, huh?” He laughed at the sight of the power he held against you. “Let’s see if this makes you cum.”   
You saw his face as he was going down on you. He pressed his tongue against your clitoris as he kept fingering you, and with every movement of his you filled the room with your moans. You could feel him smiling from your reactions, he continued teasing you with his tongue.  
“Fuck Y/N you are so wet. I fucking love it.” You tangled your fingers in his black hair, pushing him closer to you.  
“M-more, please.” He truly conquered your body and mind, all that you wanted was to be fucked by him until you are unable to move. “Please don’t stop touching me.”  
He spat inside you, which turned you on even more, and you could feel his tongue doing small but fast movements on your clit. You held onto the sheets as you moaned his name.   
“Kuroo I’m co- “You squirted right into his mouth, as you screamed in pleasure.  
He grabbed your neck quite hardly with a wild look on his eyes. “Look at me you bitch. You don’t get to ask me anything. Got that?” He slipped his fingers into your mouth, filling it with the taste of your fluids.  
You just nodded in agreement.  
He went to his nightstand, you thought he might have been looking for condoms.  
“Um, I’m on birth control so if you want you can-“  
“No.”  
His cutthroat response left you shocked, searching for your next words.  
He sighed. “Look, I bet you are a very responsible woman but I don’t think I can’t say that about every person I’ve been with recently. So this is for your safety, alright?”  
“Alright.”  
That comment left you thinking. You actually didn’t care about who he slept with, even if you didn’t want to picture it a lot; but the question that kept wandering in your mind was ‘What kind of people does he sleep with that he feels the need to protect me? Do I even know him at all?’  
You watched him put on the condom. After his comment the situation turned quite awkward, you just hoped it didn’t kill the mood for him.  
“Get on top.” He actually looked kind of angry to you, yet you never seemed to understand him and his train of thought. You did as he asked and started moving up and down.  
Even though it felt amazing, you still couldn’t stop your mind from overthinking. Did you truly know Kuroo? Or anyone at the party for that matter. What were you even doing there? Once again you submerged into a world that wasn’t yours, all those guys probably thought you were unbearable trying to get close to them.  
“All those guys…” You mumbled without noticing.  
“Huh?” Kuroo said clearly confused.   
When you noticed you instinctively covered your mouth. “It’s… not important.”  
“Oh no, it sure is. If it’s stopping you from thinking about me it must be important. Please continue.” He said ironically.  
“I’m sorry.” You started moving faster, trying to avoid the embarrassing subject by focusing on the pleasure.  
You started crying, you could hear how your bodies collided, and how much louder your moans were getting.  
“You can keep going if you want, but don’t avoid me.” He grabbed your neck once again. “So answer, what were you thinking about?”  
“I was think-“ You kept interrupting yourself with your moans. “T-the team.”  
He slapped you across the face.  
“Greedy bitch.”  
“That’s not-“  
He slapped you again.   
“Shut up.” “If you wanted them so bad you should have gone to their hotel. I’m sure they would have been more than happy to tag team you, filling all of your holes.”  
That angered you. He wasn’t listening.  
“If you are gonna keep talking then at least fuck me from behind. Then I can imagine you are whoever I want.”  
Yes, you were teasing him, but it felt right. If he was going to get jealous for no reason, might as well enjoy it.  
He was clearly offended but he did what you said.  
He grabbed you by the hair as he pounded you, he was being very rough, very different to the guy from the start that wanted you to feel comfortable.  
“How can you be so tight when you are such a whore?” He slapped your ass. “So, who are you thinking about right now? What’s my part?”  
“A-Atsumu.” You were determined on making him feel jealous, yet you didn’t understand why he was acting like that.  
“The blond idiot?”  
“And Osamu.”  
“Both of the twins? You sure have some taste...”  
Kuroo kept going harder and harder, you could feel him in your stomach.  
“Meian.” You could feel the tears running down your face, as you gasped for air.  
“Their captain? Didn’t even know you talked to him.”  
“Y-yeah, we danced for a bit. He see-“ You paused, a pulsating pain started growing on your side. “He seemed more mature than the others.”  
“So you like mature guys now? You sure build up excuses to fuck every guy on the map.”  
You held your breath; the pain was becoming more intense yet it started mixing up with the pleasure of the moment.  
“Sakusa. He seemed very mature too. And so hot.”  
“Agreed, but he’s out of your league.”  
“Are you sure?” “Then what about Bokuto?”  
He stopped, and got his face closer to yours. “Do I look like Bokuto to you?”  
“Hm, maybe…”  
He pulled out, only to pound you even harder. You could feel your knees giving up, you couldn’t control your limbs properly. Your right leg slid to the side abruptly, making you scream in pain.  
“Kuroo! Fuck me harder, please! I’m begging you please.” You moaned, and held your hip in place with your hand. This pain was familiar, you knew what happened and what it meant. It meant that Kuroo was way too good fucking you. “I can only think about you, my mind is- “you could feel you were close to coming once again. “I- I want you so bad.”  
“What’s my name baby?”  
“Kuroo.”   
You could feel him coming, and for a second you thought about how much you wanted him to actually come inside you; but maybe it wasn’t the best idea.  
After all, this was just a one night stand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was brought to you by my ACTUAL hip injury  
> yes its true lol  
> and its sooooo fucking painful  
> it isn't the first time that it happens to me, but still  
> pain  
> also i have two questions for you  
> 1\. would you like me to add songs for the chapters? i don't have spotify to make a playlist but i can still add the name of the song and such  
> 2\. do you want more 18+ chapters? my initial idea was to have this one, and then others but near the end of the story (you will probably understand why after reading next chapter) but i can try to make it work if you really really want them, tho kuroo and bokuto would probably end up fighting but some people like angst lol
> 
> well bye imma post next chapter  
> Rome~


	9. What a good friend would do

You woke up to the sound of your phone ringing. With a massive headache and a pulsing pain in your lower back and hips, you got up from the bed and grabbed your phone. You had 3 missed calls from Hitoka.  
You were glad Kuroo didn’t wake up. Like he told you, you shouldn’t get attached to each other, and you agreed with him. With that in mind, you decided to just get dressed and leave.  
Clearly, you had fun last night, both at the party and at Kuroo’s apartment. Though certain memories of last night made you embarrassed; like your hip popping out of place, you were used to it but it sure was painful. Hopefully he didn’t notice.  
Once you left the building, you went to the metro station and called Hitoka to tell her you were on your way.  
Even with all the fun you had last night, you were happy even to see the door of your apartment. You needed a shower, something to cure your hangover and a pain reliever gel for you hip.  
To your surprise, Hitoka was waiting at the couch, with her arms crossed.  
“Hi?” You said.  
“Ushijima Y/N. Good morning, oh wait is noon already.” She was visibly angry.  
“Oh God you never call me like that. Um… I was at Kuroo’s place.”  
“Don’t worry, I already figured that out. But you should’ve sent me a message last night or something! I was really worried about you.”  
“I’m sorry, I guess I just couldn’t find the right time.”  
“Alright. Just don’t scare me like that again.” She took a deep breath. “So, how was it?”  
“Oh it was great.”  
“Yeah I figured.” “Wait did you pop your hip out?” She looked concerned. How did she notice?  
“Uh yeah, but it wasn’t his fault! Don’t worry about it too much, alright?”  
“Sure… you should take a shower though; we are going out to eat some barbeque.”   
“Um… why?”  
“Oh Kenma invited us all. I just figured you would want to go too.”  
“Yeah! Wait is Kenma still next door?”  
“Yep. They stayed all night playing video games. I wish I was lying.” She chuckled.  
“Well, I’m glad they got along.”  
“Of course they get along, they are almost the same person.”

After a shower, some pills, gels and hydration you were ready. You looked like shit, but at least you felt a little better.  
“Are you ready Y/N? Hana and Kenma are next door but we are meeting with the rest at the barbeque.” Hitoka said as she was putting on her shoes.  
“Yeah! Let’s go.”   
You got together with Hana and Kenma, and after looking at their faces and remembering yours you suggested to make a stop before your destiny to buy energy drinks.  
With your energy drinks at hand, you took the metro.

The barbeque place was full of people, but apparently Kenma managed to make a reservation. Hitoka sat at the head of the table, and at her right sat Hana; next to her Kenma sat down, and you sat down right next to him. A few minutes later Shoyou and his girlfriend Luana arrived; surprisingly they didn’t look tired at all. They sat down at Hitoka’s left, Shoyou being closer to her. Almost right after them Ayumi and Goshiki arrived, who sat next to Luana. And around 30 minutes after your arrival, the divas decided to enter the place.  
“Hey! Hey! Hey!” Bokuto said enthusiastically, seriously do they all have infinite energy? He sat down right next to you and gave you a hug.  
“Hey everyone.” Atsumu said in a monotone voice. Well not everyone has infinite energy after all. He was wearing a face mask, a hat and sunglasses; but you weren’t sure if it was to hide his tired face, or if it was his inflated ego that thought he could get recognized. Either way, it didn’t matter to you, you almost felt pity for him, it must be tiring getting recognized by others while you are in this state. “Oh! You are the green dress girl! You look like shit!” He pointed at you and started laughing very obnoxiously. Never mind, you hate him.  
“Oh! You are the asshole with piss hair! It’s nice to see you again.” You gave him a sarcastic smile.  
Atsumu gave you the middle finger, and then noticed Ayumi was there.  
“Oh! And you are the one who said I was the hottest!”  
“You said what!?” Goshiki stood up, at disbelief.  
“Hey, Tsushiki, it was for a game, don’t think about it too much.” You told him, and he sat down.

After Atsumu understood those two were dating, he apologized, and he sat down at the other head of the table.  
Maybe your reunion was very dysfunctional, but after all you got along fairly well; though you were surprised about how little to nothing Bokuto was speaking.  
“Hey Bokuto are you okay?” You asked him touching his shoulder.  
“Huh? Yeah I’m alright.” Clearly something was bugging his mind. “Is Kuroo coming?”  
“He told me he wasn’t feeling well. So no, he’s not coming.” Kenma said to him.  
“Oh.” He seemed surprised, and you didn’t even think about the fact that he could’ve been invited.  
“Oh Y/N you have some hickeys right there!” Atsumu said jokingly pointing your neck. How didn’t you notice them while showering? Maybe being as tired as you were played as a disadvantage.  
You were so angry, both with Atsumu and with yourself.  
“Hey Tsum-Tsum, you don’t need to make her feel bad about it, you know?” Bokuto said, and took off his jacket. “You can wear it if you want, if it makes you feel more comfortable.”  
You just nodded, put on the jacket and zipped it all the way up. Was that why Bokuto was acting so awkward?  
Atsumu apologized, saying that he just thought it was funny.  
“Actually, you not knowing makes it even funnier; are you a highschooler or something?” He just laughed by himself. No one found it funny.  
Luckily the food arrived, which made everyone very excited. But Bokuto was by far the most excited.   
“You really like meat, don’t you?” You said to him.  
“Of course! You should eat some more Y/N!” He put some more meat on your plate.  
“Thanks Bokuto!”   
Everyone got along, which seemed almost impossible considering the amount of people you are. Kenma and Hana were talking about a new videogame, and it surprised you how much they were talking; after all they are naturally quiet people. Luana and Shoyou were telling Hitoka the story about how they met, and you decided to listen in.  
“So, they booked both of us for a photoshoot, for a local sports magazine.” Shoyou said.  
“They decided to take a picture for the cover with two athletes, and they chose us two.” Luana continued. “After that we just talked, he told me about his middle school friend who played tennis just like me, and we just started talking about techniques and such. That same weekend he invited me to go on a date, and here we are.”   
“That’s such a cute story! Also imagine the genetics of your children, they would be super athletic!” Hitoka said enthusiastically.  
“Are you playing tennis in Japan now?” You asked.  
“Of course, but right now I’m working on opening a tennis academy. I really like teaching so I think it’s a good idea.” Luana seemed very passionate about the sport, it reminded you of Shoyou back in highschool when you met him. “So, how about you two? How did you meet?” She said to Ayumi and Goshiki.  
“Um…well we met back in highschool, we both attended Shiratorizawa academy. I actually met him because of Y/N, they were actually dating.” Ayumi said, and giggled just at the reminder of you two dating.  
“Oh, did you steal her boyfriend? How are you still friends?” Luana asked.  
“Well, we dated for about two weeks maybe. We were just two dumb 15 year olds. We quickly realized we were better as friends so we broke up.” Goshiki said to the group, who was already looking concerned.  
“Oh that makes sense. So when did you two start dating?” Luana kept asking, wanting to know more about their love story.  
“In our last year of highscool. We were already friends by then, but I guess things started feeling different.” Ayumi tried to explain.  
“It took you two so long to figure out your feelings.” You laughed. “Be glad I was there to help your dumbasses!”  
Hana, who apparently was listening in decided to add to the conversation “Hey, I was there helping too! You might’ve helped Goshiki to confess his feelings, but I helped arranging their first date!”  
Bokuto and Atsumu, who were feeling a bit left out of the conversation jumped in.  
“Hey, what are you talking about guys? Love stories?” Atsumu asked.  
“Yeah! Can you believe these two dated the same guy?” Hana said pointing both Ayumi and you. She definitely knew how to be an ass. Maybe she was more like Atsumu, rather than Kenma.  
“Wow! That is a fun story! So, why did you break up with him Y/N? Was it the bowlcut? It has to be the bowlcut!” Atsumu was loving the conversation.  
“Hey!” Goshiki obviously didn’t like the comment. “We both agreed on breaking up. We just work better as friends.”  
“Well, that’s boring. I was expecting more of a ‘bad kisser’ type of answer.”  
“He’s not a bad kisser.” You said to him. “Though we didn’t kiss that many times to begin with. Like I said, we dated for two weeks.”  
“So it was like a first relationship type of thing. Got it.”  
“Well it was our first relationship.”  
“Oh! Was he your first kiss then?”  
“Yeah.”  
Atsumu just laughed obnoxiously. “Sorry, you’re just so funny.”  
You looked at him with a serious face.  
“Wait are you for real?” He looked at you, confused. “You were 15 when you got your first kiss?”  
“Yeah, is it that weird?”  
“Well, yeah I was 13.”  
“Maybe you are the weird one then.”  
“I doubt it. What about you, Bokkun?” He looked at his friend, to see if he could help him prove his point.  
“I was 17.”  
“Huh? Bokkun I said first kiss not firs-“  
“Yeah, I know. I was just really awkward with girls.” He scratched his head, and looked down. You put your hand on his shoulder, trying to make him feel better.  
“Well, maybe I am the weird one after all. What about you guys?”  
Hinata said he was 17, and so did Yachi. Kenma said he was 19, and Luana said she was 14. Goshiki said 15 (for obvious reasons), and Ayumi said she was 16.  
“Well I was 12.” Hana said to everyone’s surprise; well Ayu and you knew about that story but the rest didn’t.  
“For real?” Atsumu said, looking as if he was defeated.   
“Yeah, why would I lie? I don’t win anything from it.”   
“She isn’t lying, don’t worry.” You reassured Atsumu.  
“But she’s like the shyest, how did that even happen?”  
“Well, a boy from my class told me that I was pretty and that he liked me because I was shy. I just kissed him, and told him I didn’t like him but I was thankful for the sentiment.”  
“That makes so much sense.” Atsumu laughed. “You are so fucking cool.”  
“Thanks.”  
You kept thinking about what a giant pain in the ass Astumu was, yet he was fun to be around.   
“So, how old do you think Kuroo was when he got his first kiss?” He asked you. It’s almost as if he’s trying to prove you wrong, does he want you to dislike him?  
“How the fuck am I supposed to know that?”  
“He was 18.” Kenma interrupted.  
“He was?” You asked confused. It didn’t make much sense, considering what he told you a few days ago. Was that girl he cheated on his first kiss? How much did college change him to end up doing that to her?  
“Yeah. With Rie.”  
“Your classmate?” You asked. It seemed like Kuroo’s mind was more complex than what you thought at first. He clearly wasn’t a bad person, so what happened to him, and what happened with her that made him change so much?  
“Yeah.”  
“Really? I knew he was with her, but I didn’t know she was his first kiss. He always acts as if he’s some kind of playboy… I guess he’s just a good actor then.” Bokuto laughed. “But I guess is sweet having your first kiss with someone you love that much.” That confused you even more. You thought he didn’t care about her… and why did Bokuto phrase it like that? Did he regret his first kiss?  
Shoyou changed the subject, probably noticing how tense everything got.  
“Hey, what did you think about our team’s outfits yesterday?” He asked.  
“You were all so stylish!” Ayumi said.  
“Oh! I want to see a picture!” Hitoka said. Luana took her phone out and showed her some pictures. “Oh my God! You look so cool! Like models even!”  
“Thank you Yachi! I’m so happy you like them! I styled them, and I have to say I’m really proud, but it makes me even happier when others like them.” Luana said. She styled them? Needless to say, you were amazed.  
“You all looked really good. You did a fantasic job Luana. I felt really out of place with how basic my outfit was.” You said laughing, but kind of ashamed.  
“Don’t say that! You looked beautiful, Y/N.” Bokuto said with a smile.  
“So, which outfit was your favorite?” Atsumu asked you.  
“Well, out of the ones here I have to say Shoyou’s. Though, out of all MSBY’s members it has to be Sakusa’s. He looked so stylish, like straight out of a magazine. And he sort of has that model vibe to him, you know? He’s really good looking, but he also has the class; I don’t know.”   
“That’s why I picked out that outfit for him! It’s something that not everyone can pull off.” Luana pointed out.  
Bokuto looked sad, he even stopped eating.   
“So my outfit wasn’t your favorite, not even your second favorite?”  
“Your outfit was really good, and you looked fantastic in it. Maybe it was more of a conventional approach, just like Atsumu’s, but without a doubt you were my favorite person out of everyone at the party.” You looked at him with a smile.  
“Hah, that’s so cheesy Y/N.” Atsumu said.   
“You know, at least you should try to hide your jealousy.” You winked at him, and everyone laughed. Yeah, he’s definitely fun to be around.

Once you finished eating, since Hana suggested it, you all went to her apartment to play some videogames.  
When you arrived, you decided to go to your apartment next door to make some snacks and drinks for everyone.  
“Hey Y/N, can I help you with that?” Atsumu asked you. What was he plotting?  
“Sure, let’s go to my apartment then.”   
“Be careful Y/N!” Hinata joked.  
“Yeah! He might even burn the whole building if you leave him alone for two seconds.” Bokuto added. You considered yourself good enough to deal with someone like that; after all, Hitoka Yachi was your roommate.

“Okay! I’ll leave you in charge of the drinks if that sounds good. I’ll just make some light snacks; oh and I can also bring some of the cake I made yesterday if you want!” You told him with a smile.  
“You know, when you act like that you remind me of Samu.”  
“Your brother?”  
“Yeah, you have like that passion for cooking.”  
“I’m aware. We actually talked about that a lot last night. I promised to him I’ll visit his onigiri shop, and he said that he will wait for an invite to the inauguration of my cake shop… as if that would ever happen.” You sighed. “I’ll probably be a sad office worker my whole life.” You laughed it off.  
“I mean, that depends on you… just remember that you have a team full of customers, I swear every time that we visit Tokyo we will go to eat all of the desserts you make.” He smiled at you.  
“You know, you act like an asshole, but you are actually nice.”  
“Shut up.”  
After some time, he continued talking.  
“Um, so, what’s up with you and Kuroo?”  
“Huh? Why would you ask me that?” That question obviously altered you.  
“Well, he obviously means something to you if you react like that.”  
“I mean he’s my friend, but I’m sure that’s not what you meant when you asked that question.”  
“Alright, I’ll get straight to the point then. Did you have sex with him last night?”  
“Why the fu-“ You took a deep breath. “Yes. So? He’s still just my friend. Having sex doesn’t change anything for me. You know, having sex doesn’t mean love.”  
“Well yeah, but I’m not sure if I could have sex with a friend.”  
“People are different. Do you think I did something wrong?”  
“Not at all. You can do whatever you want with your life and your body. I’m no one to stop you from doing what you please.” He stopped his activities and grabbed your shoulder. “Hey, look at me.” He seemed serious, so you did as he asked. “Just, don’t toy around with Bokuto. He is a nice guy, and he really likes you. He doesn’t deserve to suffer… so please just be honest with him, okay? If you like Kuroo just tell him.”  
“I don’t like Kuroo, at least not in that way.” You say.  
“Okay then. I believe you.” He smiled at you. “Now let’s go with the rest.”  
“You know, I thought you were just a pain in the ass but what you just did for Bokuto really changed my mind.”  
“Well, I just did what a good friend would do, don’t you think?”  
Yeah, that’s exactly what he did. He was a good friend, without a doubt. That made you think if what he did back at the restaurant was on purpose; pointing out your hickeys and such, maybe he was just trying to protect Bokuto in his own way.

Back at Ayu and Hana’s apartment, Kenma was protesting about the game being rigged. You didn’t understand much but apparently Hana had won against him like 5 times in a row.   
You could tell that this was just the start of a very chaotic, but fun friend group. Atsumu was taking pictures of everyone amongst the chaos and making his usual jokes, which Hana seemed to love, Kenma was teaching Goshiki how to play that weird fighting game, Luana got her boyfriend and Bokuto dancing some foreign dance you’ve never seen.  
“You know; this drink is great.” Ayumi said approaching you with another glass for you. She sat next to you at the couch. “You know; these guys are fun.”   
“You say ‘you know’ a lot when you’re drunk, you know?” You said jokingly copying her, and grabbing the other drink. “Also I left Atsumu in charge of the cocktails.” You took a sip. “Oh God… Atsumu how much alcohol did you put?”   
“Yes! Group photo at the couch!” He yelled. He clearly ignored what you said.  
Everyone gathered up around Ayu and you, Hana and Kenma sat right next to Ayu, next to you sat Hitoka. Behind the couch were Luana, Shoyou and Tsushiki. Bokuto sat on the floor, right under you; while Atsumu stayed a little farther from the group so everyone would be in frame for the picture.  
“Selfie!” Atsumu yelled.  
You just did a classic peace sign, hugged Hitoka over the shoulders with your other arm, and smiled.  
“Nice guys! Now another one!” Said Atsumu.  
You just kept hugging Hitoka, and kissed Ayumi in the cheek.  
“Okay! Another one!” Atsumu said. Everyone was annoyed at this point.  
“Hey just stop taking pictures!” Goshiki said angrily.  
He took the picture while everyone was yelling at him.  
“Nice.” He laughed.

It was getting late, so everyone decided to get going. You knew you had to talk to Bokuto today.  
“Hey, Bokuto do you mind staying for a little bit? I need to talk to you.” You looked down, as he was still sitting in the floor.  
“Sure, I have no problem but what is it ab-“  
“Guys! Thank you so much!” Hana interrupted “I’m just so happy, I was feeling so alone but then you guys…” She burst into tears.   
“Aw baby, don’t cry!” Luana said, and went to hug her. “Hey, why don’t we create a group chat? You know, to talk and organize so we can hang out again.” She said with a smile on her face. “I know some of us don’t live in Tokyo, but we can always find a way to see each other.”  
“Alright, I’ll create the group chat once I get home.” Kenma said.  
Kenma left on his own, and Hinata and Luana left too. You knew Goshiki was spending the night here, which left Atsumu and Bokuto.  
“Hey Bokkun I’ll wait for you downstairs.” Atsumu said, and waved goodbye.  
“Sure.”

You invited Bokuto into your apartment.  
“You can sit down if you want.” You said, signaling the space next to you in the couch.  
“So, did something happen?” He asked looking very serious.  
“Well, I talked to Atsumu which made me think a lot. You clearly deserve to be happy and I don’t want to be an impediment that restrains you from that.”  
“Wait what? I don’t understand.” He seemed confused.  
“Contrary to Atsumu’s belief, I’m not dating Kuroo.”  
“Well, yeah you told me that at the party.” He looked you in the eyes. “But I’m not dumb either. I’m pretty sure you two had sex last night.” Was he disappointed in you?  
“Yeah. Do you think that was wrong? I’m asking seriously.”  
“You can do whatever you want, it’s your life.”  
“I’m aware, but that’s not what I mean… Kuroo is my friend, and I don’t want him to be anything more than that.”  
“So you just have sex with your friends?” You could hear his voice cracking up.  
“I- no. And honestly, I doubt we will ever have sex again.”  
Bokuto just stayed silent.  
“Last night made me realize that I was wrong.” You continued.  
“But why- why should I give a fuck about that?” He felt like shit, you were making feel like shit. He was with his head down. Was he crying? “You don’t owe me anything, you can be with whoever you want, but… I don’t want to hear about it, please.”  
“Bokuto, I know that.”  
“Do you know how I feel about you?”  
“I… I think I do. The truth is I’ve been wanting to see you for so long, I felt like you didn’t want anything to do with me, and I thought just seeing you happy on TV was enough but… it’s not. I want to get to know you, I want to smile with you, I want to hear all the dumb stories Atsumu has to tell, I want to be your friend until time tells me that our feelings have changed.” Your voice was starting to crack up as well.  
“Three months… Atsumu and I are staying in Tokyo for three months.” He looked up, with tears in his eyes and a big smile. “Let’s see how things go in this three months, what do you think?”  
“I’d like that.”  
“Friends?”  
“Friends.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dude this chapter was so much fun to write idk whyyy.... you know, besides the last part *cries with bokuto*  
> also idk if you can tell but i really like atsumu lol  
> i'm gonna try to stabilize my shit and update at least once a week (since my chapters always end up being insanely short)  
> ok that's it  
> feel free to criticize down there in the comments  
> i would actually appreciate it lol  
> Rome~


	10. Connects yet divides

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if I kept anyone waiting, I've been having quite the issues surrounding my family so I didn't have much time to update. Luckily I had this chapter written, hope it's enough.  
> Also I apologize for any mistakes in advance since I didn't have time to check it twice. If you find any please let me know so I can correct them.  
> Enjoy (hopefully)...

You were probably one of the few people in the world who love Mondays. Why? Because your job on Mondays is to deliver the desserts you prepared on the weekend.  
You had quite a stressful Friday after Kuroo left your apartment, but you managed to prepare enough desserts for the day. Once you deliver them, you just have to wait to confirm the number of needed desserts for the next day; but you were probably going to pull an all-nighter after your university classes.  
Your manager was more than happy with your results, and told you to rest for now. Feeling accomplished, you left the store.  
While you were on the metro you checked your phone, and the group chat was exploding with the amount of messages. Kenma added everyone who was yesterday at the barbecue, along with Kuroo, and since then they have been texting non-stop. But who could it be on a Monday at 7 a.m.?

ATSUMU MIYA  
Guys! Is anyone free today?  
We are boreddddd

KENMA KOZUME  
So? It’s not my problem  
I’ll just silence the group  
You’re annoying

ATSUMU MIYA   
Whyyy? :( 

HANA NAKAMURA  
Um, I just woke up  
But I have to study  
Sorry :(   
If it makes you feel any better, I don’t think you’re annoying  
You just laughed reading that message

Y/N  
Hahahahah you have to be joking  
He is the most annoying person on Earth

ATSUMU MIYA  
Y/N!   
Don’t say that :( 

SHOUYOU HINATA  
Sorry guys  
We have a date planned with Lu today  
But have fun!

Y/N  
Atsumu  
I’m free  
Did you have anything in mind?

ATSUMU MIYA   
I knew you loved me <3  
I’m actually at Bokkun’s house   
But he’s asleep :(

Y/N  
If you want me to I can just go there  
Send me the address  
And no, I don’t love you  
He sent you the address, which actually sounded familiar, and continued on with your ride.

You arrived, and as you suspected it was Bokuto’s childhood home. It made sense that he was staying with his parents if he didn’t live in Tokyo, but why was Atsumu there?  
You rang the bell, and soon enough a familiar face appeared.  
“Y/N?” It was Bokuto’s mom. “Oh my God, it’s been so long!” She hugged you. “Come on in. Atsumu is already having breakfast, you’ll have to wait for Koutarou though… he is taking a shower.”  
“Oh don’t worry.” You stepped in the house, it was just like you remembered it to be. “Where’s everyone? Did Mako and Sayaka move out too?”   
“Yeah, they did. But they are both living here in Tokyo. Mako is a dentist, and Sayaka is an elementary school teacher just like me.”  
“Oh, I didn’t know you used to be an elementary school teacher.”  
“Yeah, and my husband is a veterinarian. He actually owns a veterinary; he is there right now.”  
“The one that is like three blocks away from here?”  
“Exactly!”  
“Wow that’s cool! That place is huge!”  
When you arrived to the kitchen, you saw Atsumu devouring pizza.  
“I thought you were having breakfast.” You laughed.  
“Well, this is what’s left from last night. It counts at breakfast!”  
“Sure, sure.”

A few minutes into your discussion about whether cold pizza can be considered breakfast or not, Bokuto came down the stairs, ready to leave.  
“Y/N!” He pulled you into a hug. “Let’s go! Woo!”

“Hey guys, where are we going then?” You asked. You already left the house but those two were still standing at the door like idiots.  
“Um… I don’t really know.” Atsumu said.  
“Dude you were the one that suggested going out! At least plan something out.” You sighed. “What do you think about the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium?”  
“Really? Why do you wanna go there?” Atsumu asked you.  
“Well, I met this guy there.” You pointed at Bokuto. “And I think the Nationals that year made me realize a lot of things. Besides… Bokuto is the only one from the players that I met during highschool who didn’t make it into my box of memories, so we should take a picture.”  
“You have a box of memories? I wanna see it! It sounds so cool!” Bokuto said excited. “I wanna be in that box too!”  
“I can show it to you if you want.”  
Atsumu started laughing. “Sorry, it just sounds so funny when you say it like that.”  
“What are you, a five year-old?” You actually thought it was kinda funny too, but you weren’t going to admit that.

You were outside the gymnasium, and Astumu (who you already baptized as the photographer of the club) took a bunch of pictures of you two, then decided to join for some selfies; which like everything he did ended up posted on his social media. You wondered if he already uploaded the pictures from yesterday.  
“This brings back memories.” Atsumu said. “So you watched our match against Karasuno, right?”  
“I did. I thought it was a very difficult match, and seeing your insane plays and ideas sure made me nervous, but they also excited me. It was like I just found another great player, a very smart and quick minded one that’s not scared to try.”  
Atsumu put his hand over his heart. “I’m touched. Who knew you’ve been in love with me since then?”  
“You’re an idiot.” You laughed, and he laughed too.  
“So what about me?” Bokuto asked. “What was your first impression of me?”  
“So you’re telling me I ran up to you in crutches for you not to remember what I said to you?”   
“Uh, I remember but… I just like hearing it from you.”  
You sighed.  
“Bokuto, the reason why I talked to you that day was because I was impressed with your play, but I was also very intrigued about your personality. You have quite the presence during matches, but back then there were lapses in which you looked down and disoriented. Once you scored against those three blockers, it was like you were a different person; the way you held yourself around your teammates and the ones cheering you on. I just thought ‘that guy is great, he is so talented, popular and likeable… I don’t have the guts to talk to him.’ Yet, Shoyou was there to help with that.” “Um, did I talk too much?” You just smiled awkwardly.  
“I sound so awesome!” He laughed. “I’m glad you talked to me that day.” “But, just so you know, I’m way better now.” He said throwing his fists in the air.  
“I know. I watch your matches. You guys have a great team.”

Atsumu suggested going to the Meiji Shrine, that was nearby.   
“You have time right?” Bokuto asked.  
“Yeah, I’m free till 6 pm. That’s when my first class starts.”  
“Cool! We can have lunch together then, and still visit some more places.”  
You usually don’t visit this parts of Tokyo, even with all the years you’ve been living there, so this particular shrine was new to you, and apparently it was new for Atsumu too.  
“Hey, are you going to take pictures of everything you see?”   
“What’s the problem? Wanna pose for the camera, Y/N?”  
“Sure.”   
And to every place he decided to picture, you moved to while Bokuto chased after you two like you were the kids and he was the parent. How knew Bokuto was the most responsible out of the three of you?  
After a while, you walked to Shibafu park, and sat down on a bench admiring the nature and the flowers that spring gifted you with.  
“It feels weird being in Tokyo not thinking about work.” Atsumu looked at the sky. “It’s exciting.”  
“Yeah! Well, I always take time to visit my family but I’ve never thought I was going to spend my Monday thinking about highschool. Man, those are good memories.”  
You turned to them, both now looking at the sky. “Well, I’m glad your school days bring you such happy memories. For me, coming to Tokyo that time was a turning point rather than the achievement of happiness.”  
“What do you mean by that?” Bokuto asked.  
You took some time to think, and decided to answer with a question. “How did you two get into volleyball? I mean, which memories come up, when did you said ‘I’m hooked up with this?’”  
“Seeing another setter play, and wanting to become one. I learnt how awesome setting is, and I fell in love with volleyball.” He might have been confused by why you asked that, but his answer came out naturally.  
You looked at Bokuto.  
“I think everyone has ‘that moment’. When I stopped getting blocked, when I changed my spiking technique and I won over them. That was my moment, when I felt nearly invincible.”   
“Those moments changed your lives. They shaped your academic paths, your friendships, everything. You’ve lived your lives being part of something.” You focused on one specific tree, to say your words as calm as you could. “To be honest, I hated volleyball and everything it stood for. It felt like a giant lie. While Wakatoshi was born with such a talent, I was rejected by everyone. During PE, I always ended up either injured or not trying to play. My classmates… they thought I was faking my injuries and slacking off. I was the lazy one who ruined the fun for them, the one that would always make their team lose. No one wanted me in their team, no one wanted to be friends with me cause I was boring to them. Sometimes, kids are mean, they judge without knowing, they assume.”  
“Um… sorry Y/N.” Atsumu interrupted you.  
“Huh? Why?”  
“Well to be honest I used to be like that. I hate people that slack off forgetting the efforts of the rest, that don’t take things seriously. So, I’m sorry. Even if I wasn’t the one that hurt you. I don’t know much about your health condition besides what Bokkun tried to explain to me, but I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve to be marginalized for something that isn’t under your control.”  
What he said made you feel at peace.  
“Thanks, Atsumu.” “Luckily once I started highschool, I got my proper diagnose: severe hypermobility syndrome. That diagnose alone meant that I could skip PE, though most of my problems with making friends didn’t go away. I’m still thankful to Tendou for helping me with that, and making me feel a little better about myself. Eventually both Hana and Ayu were in highshcool with me, which made me feel less left out.” “Before those Nationals I truly wanted to hate volleyball, sports, and all they stand for. Yet I loved watching matches and learning the rules and the different plays.” You took a deep breath; this was hard to talk about. “You always hear sport teams talking about the connection they have with each other, but for me sports meant exclusion. Just like everything in life it has its positives and negatives. It connects yet divides, it teaches the power that a team holds, what working together means. But it taught me what being alone, what being different meant. Everyone was having fun, and I couldn’t. They looked at me as if I was an idiot, calling me names, and I truly believed everything they said.”   
Bokuto put his arm around your shoulders, supporting you.  
“Luckily, one day Goshiki begged me to become Shiratorizawa’s manager. It really changed my mind and my life. And I realized that no matter what, I will always love volleyball, I just found that love from a different perspective than everyone elses.”  
You laughed, trying to alleviate the tension your talk created. “So I guess those matches you played back in 2013 really meant something.”

After debating whether to eat sushi or ramen, you ended up on a ramen place since Bokuto said it was ‘too good to miss’.  
“D’ya like it?” Bokuto asked with his mouth full.  
“Yes Bokuto, I think it’s almost impossible to not like ramen.”  
He swallowed the food, and looked at you.  
“Hey, why do you keep calling me Bokuto?”  
You laughed. “What? Did I mess up? Isn’t that your name?”  
“Yeah, but I mean, I told you to call me Koutarou remember?”  
“Huh? Not really.”  
“When we met. You said you preferred being called Y/N, so I told you to call me Koutarou.”  
“Oh.” “Then what about Kou?”  
“Sure, I like that.” He smiled, then continued eating.  
“Wait I want a nickname too!” Atsumu said. “Don’t leave me out!”  
“As if you had a nickname for me.” You looked at him. “But you’re definitely piss hair.”  
He gasped. “After all the photos I took for you, you ugly gremlin!”  
“That’s fun, keep the bullying going. I’m sure you’re used to it, being the uglier twin must have been really hard growing up.” Oh, the joy of messing with Atsumu.  
Bokuto just looked at you two amused, he was probably happy about the fact that you two were getting along (in your own ways).

They decided to travel with you to the university, and once you arrived they said goodbye.  
“Bye Kou! Bye… um sorry what was your name? You are just forgettable, what can I say?”  
Bokuto laughed at your comment, while Astumu was angrily trying to find a comeback.  
“You fucking bitch… you think you are memorable, huh? You looked like fucking snot with that green dress at the party.”  
“Aw, you remember my dress. I’m flattered.” You said sarcastically. “Maybe you liked dancing with me more than what I thought.” You just turned around and went to class thinking about that funny duo.  
You were not sure if you would be able to concentrate.


End file.
